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Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Conservatives, Liberals called out over lack of 'prudence' in platforms
OTTAWA — Pierre Poilievre is defending the Conservative campaign platform's heavy reliance on economic growth in a period of deep uncertainty, while the NDP and Liberals spar over cost-cutting. The Conservative leader was campaigning in Hamilton, Ont., on Wednesday, with just days to go before the federal vote on Monday and a day after he released the party's costed campaign platform. That plan promises to reduce the federal deficit to $14 billion in four years. It also banks on billions of dollars in unrealized revenues from cutting "red tape" and getting new projects built over that horizon. Poilievre was asked Wednesday whether those projections are realistic given Canada is just two months into a trade war with the United States — and as some economists predict the country could hit a recession if the trade uncertainty is not resolved quickly. "Now, you ask me in a period of economic weakness, after the Liberals have been in power for three terms, whether it is wise to campaign on economic growth? It's not only wise, it's essential for a change that we grow our economy," he said. Poilievre said he would end Liberal laws that he claims are holding back economic growth and the ability to get resources to market. He also attacked the spending levels in Liberal Leader Mark Carney's campaign platform. Carney returned fire Wednesday, calling the Conservative platform 'a fantasy of fiscal tricks and phantom growth.' Carney said a day earlier that his "numbers are prudent" and the Liberal plan does not "rely" on rosy predictions in a global climate of economic uncertainty driven by the United States' trade war. "We are in a crisis. In a crisis, you always plan for the worst, you don't hope for the best, and you don't make those types of assumptions," he said Tuesday. The Institute of Fiscal Studies and Democracy, a non-partisan think-tank at the University of Ottawa, released its grades Tuesday for the three main parties' campaign platforms. It gave the Liberals a rating of "good" while the Conservatives and NDP both received a "pass." The final scores for each of the parties were actually quite close: 35/44 for the Liberals, 33.5/44 for the Conservatives and 31/44 for the NDP. The institute criticized both the Liberal and Conservative platforms on the question of "prudence" — how they account for fiscal and economic risks and unforeseen events. It said both platforms included "no consideration of prudence and risk" in their "optimistic" outlooks and gave both campaigns a score of two out of four on prudence. Commenting on the Conservative platform, the institute noted that the Government of Canada's planning framework "does not typically book additional revenues for new measures and should not book efficiency savings before having been achieved, since past results have proven disappointing." The NDP received a score of three out of four on prudence because its platform included a small contingency reserve and made use of the Bank of Canada's recent economic scenarios for a wider range of tariff impacts. NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh was in Edmonton on Wednesday warning Canadians about program cuts under a possible Liberal government, and arguing that electing New Democrat members of Parliament would help keep the Liberals in check. The Liberal platform plans for $28 billion in unspecified cost cuts from "increased government productivity." Carney said Tuesday that he expects a Liberal government would actually "exceed those cost reductions." "That is going to be devastating," Singh said Wednesday. "We cannot afford that. We can't let him have all the power. You need New Democrats to fight back and stop those cuts." Carney was asked during a campaign stop in Victoria on Wednesday to respond to the NDP's claim that his planned cuts would sacrifice programs Canadians care about. He answered by affirming his commitment to $10-a-day child care, dental care and pharmacare, funding the CBC and continuing to address environmental concerns. "Progressive policies — I think of them more as policies and institutions that are at the heart of this country because we care about each other," Carney said. But he claimed a Conservative government would spell the end of those priorities for progressive voters. Poilievre has said during the campaign that Canadian currently enrolled in the government's pharmacare or dental care plans will not lose that coverage under a Conservative government. Polls suggest the Liberals are leading the Conservatives, and 55 per cent of those polled by Leger recently said they think Carney and the Liberals will win. Singh has seen support for his party dwindle during this campaign; the latest Leger poll suggests just 8 per cent of Canadians are planning to vote for a New Democrat. Singh is planning to campaign in Edmonton on Wednesday before participating in a virtual forum with the Assembly of First Nations. — with files from Alessia Passafiume and Kyle Duggan in Ottawa This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 23, 2025. Craig Lord, The Canadian Press Sign in to access your portfolio
CBC
19-04-2025
- Business
- CBC
How will the parties pay for their promises? Why costed platforms are important
As most of the major parties gear up to unveil their fully costed platforms, a former assistant parliamentary budget officer says they're important because Canadians want to understand how parties will implement their spending plans during a trade war. "We really want to understand how they are addressing those really big issues and in a changing context," said Sahir Khan, now the executive vice-president of the Institute of Fiscal Studies and Democracy (IFSD) at the University of Ottawa. Khan added the federal government is facing a worse budgetary outlook because of U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs and the fact the Liberals' hike to capital gains did not become law before the campaign began. "Everything's about $68 billion worse over the next five years," Khan said on CBC's The House, referencing an analysis from the IFSD about the federal deficit. "So a slower economy, more spending to cover EI and other supports for the industry." "So we have got to figure out how these parties are going to demonstrate their fiscal plans, how they're going to implement and how they are — frankly — going to react," he told host Catherine Cullen. Costed platforms coming On Friday afternoon, the Bloc Québécois became the first party to release a fully costed platform. However, because the Bloc only runs candidates in Quebec, it will never form government. Earlier this week, the Green Party released a partially costed platform. The Parliamentary Budget Officer (PBO) has looked at some of the Green's proposals, including increasing the corporate income tax rate and raising the federal minimum wage. At a campaign event in Niagara Falls, Ont., on Friday morning, Liberal Leader Mark Carney said his party's full platform will be unveiled on Saturday. NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh told reporters in Yamamiche, Que., on Friday morning that his party would release its full platform "very soon" and clarified it would be costed. On Wednesday evening during the French leaders' debate, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said his party will cost out its promises and the full platform "is going to come out in a few days." WATCH: Carney announces full Liberal platform will be unveiled on Saturday: Carney says fully costed Liberal platform will be released by April 21 4 days ago Duration 1:37 Asked when his party's fully costed platform will be available for voters to see, Liberal Leader Mark Carney promised to unveil it 'before the advance polls close' at 9 p.m. on April 21. Khan said the ISFD was caught by surprise when both the Liberals and Conservatives announced tax cuts. Carney has pledged to cut the tax rate of the lowest tax bracket by one percentage point. Poilievre wants to drop the tax rate on the lowest income tax bracket from 15 per cent to 12.75 per cent. "Those two felt a little out of sorts given everything else that was going on," Khan said. "And I think we're really waiting to see how that fits in with all the other pieces. And this is a puzzle." Why are the parties waiting so long? By the time the Liberals, Conservatives and NDP release their costed platforms, some Canadians will have already cast their ballots at advance polls. Khan said Trump's actions have created uncertainty for all the parties, and releasing costed platforms "went from being kind of an offensive issue to probably a defensive issue for all the parties." WATCH: Fact-checking the English federal leaders' debate: Fact-checking the federal leaders' debate 19 hours ago Duration 2:27 CBC's Jonathon Gatehouse fact-checked comments by the main party leaders on foreign aid, taxes and government services during the English-language federal leaders' debate on Thursday. Even if the costed platforms are released this late in the campaign, Khan said there is still value for voters because the documents will serve as the roadmap for whichever party — or parties — form government. "We really do care about the plans that they have whether they're credible or not [and] how they're going to deliver," Khan said. "We need to pay attention to them because if they're not realistic, if they're not credible, they're you're going to be into this situation where the government's all hat and no cattle, as my uncle from Texas would say," Khan said. "That's a risk."
