Tax revenue helps the federal government
Published Nov 05, 2026 • Last updated 4 hours ago • 2 minute read
Finance Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne displays the federal budget in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Nov. 5, 2026. Photo by Blair Gable /Postmedia Network See more Toronto Sun on Google — save as a Preferred Source
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While high oil prices are crushing the life out of Canadian families, Thursday’s federal budget reveals they have been great news for Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government, which is rolling in our dough.
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Because of that, Carney plans to spend $142.1 billion out of $158.3 billion in anticipated windfall tax revenues over the next five years on new government programs he says will boost the Canadian economy, while the costs of servicing Canada’s $1.37 trillion public debt will soar.
This year, federal taxpayers will pay $60.2 billion in interest on the debt, more than the $57.4 billion the feds will transfer to the provinces and territories for health care.
By 2030-31, paying interest on debt is expected to soar to $85.5 billion on $1.6 trillion in public debt, a 42% increase over five years, with annual deficits ranging from $52.9 billion to $62.5 billion and no plan to balance the federal budget, ever.
At that point, paying $85.5 billion annually in interest on debt will be almost as much as the $89.9 billion the federal government will transfer to the provinces and territories for health care and social programs combined.
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The only good news is that last year’s deficit came in at $39.3 billion compared to $66.9 billion in April’s spring economic update. But that was a one-off.
“Each new dollar of debt generated by this budget is a dollar borrowed from Canada’s future generations,” said Gabriel Giguere, senior policy analyst at the Montreal Economic Institute.
He noted Carney’s parlour trick of claiming he will balance the federal operating deficit next year, by reclassifying some government expenditures as capital investments, is meaningless.
“Whether an expenditure is listed in an operating budget or a capital budget changes nothing for lenders,” Giguere said.
“Interest rates are unaffected by the use to which funds are put by the federal government, and this reclassification of spending just obscures the budget picture.”
Remember when Carney promised to “spend less, invest more” when running for the Liberal leadership last year?
As it turns his government will spend more — $602.6 billion this year up from $565.7 billion last year, rising to $682.1 billion in 2030-31.
Carney grandly titled his second budget “Masters of Our Destiny”. It sounds more like we’re on the way to the poorhouse.
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https://torontosun.com/opinion/editorials/editorial-guess-who-benefits-from-high-oil-prices
