Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland. (CPAC)
A look inside the books of the federal Liberals with a new high in the national deficit.
The latest projections show it’ll hit a new high of at least $381.6 billion this fiscal year.
Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland says the blueprint will include $25.1 billion in newly-announced programs aimed at getting businesses through the next few months.
“Canada’s spending as outlined today is prudent, it is thoughtful, it is careful. And what we understand is that the job we have to do right now is to be sure that our economy is not scarred, to be sure that our economy is not wounded so that we can come out of this crisis roaring back,” says Freeland. “We believe that the best way for Canada to honour our credit obligations, is to have a strong and growing economy, that’s what this plan is all about.”
The Figures
- The debt-to-GDP ratio will be 50.7% in 2020-21 [up from 49.1% in July]
- The federal deficit could drop to $121.2 billion or increase to $136.7 billion
- Worst-case scenario, the government says the deficit could hit between $388.8 billion and $398.7 billion
- The federal debt will exceed $1.4 trillion by March 2021 [up from $1.2 trillion in July]
Supporting Canadians and Fighting COVID-19
- Reworked Employment Insurance program
- New sick leave and caregiver leave programs
- Safe Restart Package for the provinces [$19.9 billion]
- Increased funds for COVID-19 testing, vaccines, self-isolation support, and procuring personal protective equipment
- Increase to maximum rate of the Emergency Wage Subsidy [75% beginning in late December at a cost of $14.7 billion]
- Extension to the current rate of support offered through Canada Emergency Rent Subsidy & top-up to businesses forced to close, until March 2021 [combined cost of $2.1 billion]
- Safe Long-Term Care Fund to help provinces and territories better protect Canadian seniors [$1 billion]
- Highly Affected Sectors Credit Availability Program: Help for industries to access 100% government-backed loans [$1 million for up to ten years]
- Imposing the Goods and Services Tax/Harmonized Sales Tax on multinational digital giants such as Netflix and Amazon
- The creation of an Early Learning and Child Care System [initial investment of $20 million over five years, starting in 2021-22]
- More support of up to $1,200 a year in 2021 for each child under the age of six through the Canada Child Benefit program
What’s next
All of the proposed new measures will be voted on by members of parliament in the coming weeks. A full federal budget is expected sometime in 2021.
