OTTAWA — It’ll be a chance for the prime minister to put his money where his mouth is.
Next month’s federal budget dominated question period on Wednesday with the Conservatives taking full advantage of Prime Minister Mark Carney’s invitation for a sit-down to talk about the long-delayed fiscal plan.
“The prime minister did not keep his promise to spend less, he doubled the deficit he inherited and now inflation rates are climbing,” Opposition Leader Pierre Poilievre said in French.
“Will the prime minister agree to what we’re looking for: An affordable life for Canadians?”
In response, Carney described the upcoming budget as “ambitious” and “affordable.”
“We will clean up operational expenditures, but we will be investing in Canada,” he said in French.
“This will be the largest investment in our country, in the history of our country.”
Budget meeting Wednesday afternoon
Wednesday saw word of the meeting between the two leaders , which came just days after Poilievre penned a letter to the PM saying his party’s support of the budget hinges on it containing what they describe as measures to bolster the economy, cut spending and make life more affordable for Canadians.
Experts are also keenly watching the proceedings, saying it’s time for Carney to make good on his policy promises .
With the Liberals precariously holding on to power via a minority government, opposition support is vital to ensure the budget — and the Carney government — survives the year.
“The food price inflation is now double the target or, if you’re one of those two million people lined up at food banks every single month, the prime minister says you’ve never had it so good,” Poilievre said.
“How is it possible for this prime minister to be so costly and so out of touch with reality.”
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Budget lessons from PM, Liberal catcalls
Carney chalked up Poilievre’s concerns to a perceived lack of knowledge.
“It’s time once again for an economic lesson,” Carney responded, going into a discussion on the relationship between deficits and inflation.
“The food inflation rate is the G7 average and we have the lowest deficit in the G7,” he said.
“What the government is going to do is use that deficit to grow this economy like it’s never seen before.”
Catcalls from the Liberal benches drowned out much of Poilievre’s question, particularly after he implied the PM was more interested in giving Canadians lectures on economic policy instead of making life more affordable — earning Liberal MPs a rebuke from House Speaker Francis Scarpaleggia that did little to prevent more catcalls once the Tory leader attempted to repeat his question.
