It's Just An Economy

To remind one, Canadians voted for this:

“Governments lack incentives to spend prudently and balance their financial affairs as evidenced by the deficit spending and run up in federal debt before the COVID-19 pandemic struck,” said economist Livio Di Matteo, author of Tax and Expenditure Limitations for Canada’s Federal Government: A Primer.

He said if Trudeau had established a fiscal anchor in 2015 that limited spending increases to 2.9% annually (keeping pace with inflation and population growth) from 2015-19, instead of his actual increase of 5% annually, the government would have had a $4 billion surplus in 2025-26.

That includes lifting the 2.9% fiscal anchor during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Instead, based on his election platform, Trudeau is now predicting a $32 billion deficit in 2025-26, with no end of deficits in sight.

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Carbon taxes are “not fair” for Canadian companies if foreigners don’t pay them too, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said yesterday. Cabinet has endorsed in principle a proposal to impose carbon tariffs on inexpensive imports from coal-powered China manufacturers: “We’re protecting the planet.”

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A Green Budget Coalition whose directors once included Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault yesterday petitioned cabinet for a $4,000 SUV tax. The levy should apply to all makes and models of passenger vehicles with internal combustion engines, the Coalition said: “Minister Guilbeault himself was directly involved with the Green Budget Coalition at one point.”

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Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tried to claim a moral victory Thursday after his day at the White House did little to defuse an escalating continental dispute over President Joe Biden’s plans to encourage Americans to buy more electric vehicles.

 

(Sidebar: by the way, electric cares are powered by the grid which does not rely on solar or wind power. They cannot drive too far. They cannot be heated or cooled. The battery will go into a dump somewhere. Why would the taxpayer have to subsidise these pious-mobiles? Ask Justin and Goebbels.)

 

Nope, and why would they?:

Canada’s inflation rate jumped yet again to a new 18-year high of 4.7%. This means everyday goods Canadians purchase are getting more expensive – this includes the cost of groceries and the price of gas.

Life is getting more expensive than ever for Canadians, but do our politicians care? Their current priorities indicate that they don’t. 

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Rather, what the government wants to do:

The finding comes as inflation hit its highest rate since 2003 last month — a whopping 4.7 per cent. The climbing costs have forced consumers of every age, income and political creed to spend more to fill up their tanks and grocery carts.

On top of that, a long-simmering affordability crisis spanning housing, child-care and higher-education costs seems to have reached a boiling point. For example, Canada’s average national home price has risen a mind-boggling 32 per cent between July 2019 and July 2021, according to data from the Canadian Real Estate Association.

While these issues are top of mind for Canadians, the poll found a disconnect between what Canadians wished to see prioritized and what they think the government can actually accomplish.