Liberal Party of Canada activists on Saturday dismissed a proposal to include a balanced budget in their next election platform, after applauding former Prime Minister Jean Chretien who touted budget surpluses.
The resolution aimed at “sound management of the debt and a return to a balanced budget” was defeated, by 76 votes in favor against 97 opposed. In this, they did not follow the thinly veiled advice of former Prime Minister Jean Chrétien, who had spoken the day before about his pride in having restored order to public finances.
“In the past 60 years, there have only been ten surplus budgets in history [récente] Canadian. And M. [le chef conservateur Pierre] Poilievre, they were always liberal governments! “, launched Jean Chrétien, after having elaborated at length on the precarious financial situation of indebted Canada of the 1990s.
The man who led Canada between 1993 and 2003 was warmly applauded by Liberal activists, but especially when he recalled that his party had legalized same-sex marriage, abolished the death penalty and refused to commit in the war in Iraq. Much less when he talked about the benefits of budget surpluses.
Although nearly 4,000 delegates had registered for the Liberal national convention, launched Thursday in Ottawa, only a small fraction of this number had moved Saturday morning to decide on the policies that their party must adopt for the next eight years.
Justified deficits
“I am always for fiscal rigor and prudence. I will always be on that side. […] It is a target to which we must aspire, fiscal prudence, but we must not that by targeting that, we miss opportunities for growth, ”said Quebec Liberal MP Sophie Chatel at the Dutyshortly after the vote.
The one who is also a member of the Standing Committee on Finance in Ottawa believes that the deficits for the next few years announced in the most recent federal budget constitute “good debt”. She cites the major investments in the green economy as an example. “What is important is to invest in the economy of tomorrow. »
Liberal leader Justin Trudeau refused Friday to comment on a plan to return to balanced budgets. “We know that it is essential to demonstrate fiscal responsibility, which we are always doing,” he said, shortly before leaving his congress and flying to London to attend the King’s coronation. Charles III.
For his part, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has been keeping an eye on the work of the Liberal convention, according to his social media posts on the subject.
” [Justin] The out-of-touch Trudeau and elite liberal millionaires are gathered to pat each other on the back. […] They look down on ordinary people who cannot eat, heat or shelter after Trudeau shattered our economy,” the Conservative leader tweeted.
Liberal activists also rejected Saturday morning the idea of making voting compulsory at the federal level. They adopted other resolutions on Saturday, such as increasing the minimum number of weeks of leave per year to four, increasing the military budget by $32 billion, establishing a guaranteed basic income, and building a high-speed rail link. speed between Quebec and Windsor.
The Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau, unequivocally announced Thursday evening that he would be a candidate in the next federal election, which must be held no later than the fall of 2025, in order to face Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre. “It will be the honor of my life to lead us there,” he told his supporters. Until then, nothing obliges him to put in place the policies which are chosen by the militants of his party.
With The Canadian Press