(Ottawa) The decision of Liberal activists to set aside a resolution urging their party to adopt a proposal to return to a balanced budget in its next electoral platform demonstrates the “turn to the left, very to the left” of Justin’s troops Trudeau, believes the Conservative lieutenant for Quebec, Pierre Paul-Hus.
“It is certain that with the alliance with the New Democrats, then now with the way of spending the money without regard to the taxpayers, it is clearly a very left turn on the part of the Liberal Party of Canada” , said Pierre Poilievre’s Quebec lieutenant in an interview with The Canadian Press on the sidelines of the Liberal convention.
He considers “very worrying” the signal sent by the activists that “no, the balanced budget is not important, we continue like that”. It is neither more nor less than a break with “the Liberal Party way of doing things for the past 100 years”.
The resolution, which came from the Quebec wing of the party, was defeated in a show of hands where 76 delegates were in favor and 97 against.
Its preamble argued that the federal debt rose from 30% of GDP in 2015-2016 – when the Liberals came to power – to nearly 50% in 2021-2022, which “worries many Canadians”.
He also mentions that the presence of a program to reduce the debt and return to balanced budgets will “undoubtedly have significant importance” in the minds of voters when choosing a party to govern the country.
On Friday, Prime Minister Trudeau unveiled his colors by refusing to commit to adopting such a plan, although he considers “fiscal responsibility” “essential”. He insisted to reporters that Canada has the lowest deficit in the G7, the lowest debt-to-GDP ratio in the G7 and is one of the three largest countries in the world with a rating of AAA credit.
“Flexibility” for “investments”
After the vote, Liberals explained that activists want to offer “a little flexibility” to the government and that “budgetary discipline is part of the DNA of the Liberal Party”.
The Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, François-Philippe Champagne, also called for a distinction to be made between “expenses and investments” by citing the new Volkswagen battery plant for which Ottawa has extended up to 13 billion subsidies, but which “will pay dividends over generations”.
PHOTO SEAN KILPATRICK, THE CANADIAN PRESS
François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry
The argument is far from convincing Mr. Paul-Hus. “In 2015, when Justin Trudeau got elected, he played in that field by saying: ‘Listen, I’m going to run a small deficit of 10 billion the first year, the second year to invest massively in our infrastructure.’ You look at that, you say: “No, that can make sense”. But in the end, we saw an additional deficit of 100 billion in four years with little investment in infrastructure. »
And although he recognizes that the federal government had to come to the aid of the population during the pandemic, Mr. Paul-Hus believes that there has been a “loss of control” of public finances.
In its most recent budget, which was tabled last March, the Trudeau government abandoned its projection of a return to balanced budgets in five years. For the 2023-2024 fiscal year, the federal government projected that the deficit should stand at $40.1 billion.
The budget document, however, announced that Ottawa would grant nearly 80 billion by 2034-2035 to support the energy transition through five tax credits, a replica of the plan of the American government of Joe Biden. He also said that setting up a dental plan — a key commitment to the New Democratic Party (NDP) — would cost $13 billion over five years and $4.4 billion annually thereafter.
Former Prime Minister Jean Chrétien has been one of the headliners of the Liberal convention in recent days. The man who led the country from 1993 to 2003, having won three majority mandates, addressed the theme of public finances during a speech which earned him thunderous applause. “For 60 years, there have only been ten budget surpluses in Canadian finances and, Mr. Poilievre, it was always (under) Liberal governments,” he said.
Liberal delegates passed a total of 24 resolutions which thus became official party policy for the next eight years. Among them, forcing employers under federal jurisdiction to offer four weeks of paid leave upon hiring, and establishing a guaranteed basic income.