The News Rundown

Budget 2025

The first budget for Mark Carney’s government was tabled this week by Finance Minister Francois Philippe Champagne. The budget on the whole brings a deficit of $78.4b, the perception of a steady hand for Carney voters, and no new affordability measures amongst other things.
The budget itself is a boring document, it’s a document that is a centrist budget in that it does things like cutting the public service over time, winding down Trudeau’s tree planting program, and returning international development assistance levels to pre-pandemic levels.
During the election one of the proposals of this government before they were elected was to transform the economy and provide a steady hand in the dealings with the Trump administration.
Most everything to date has been announced already and there are no new measures announced to transform the economy.
Projects announced via the Major Projects Office that sees projects like mineral expansion and the St. Lawrence seaway expansion can be seen as generational.
Also the process to diversify Canada’s trade corridors is being billed as generational as this over time weans Canada off of American dependencies.
In essence things like ports, rail corridors, energy grids, critical minerals, and defence industrial capacity is what this government sees as generational transformational investment.
As this includes the Major Projects Office encompasses a large portion of these investments including what amounts to near official confirmation that the Pathways Plus carbon capture project in Alberta will be greenlit.
Language in the budget also insinuates that the oil and gas emissions cap would no longer be required under circumstances where technologies like carbon capture and storage are employed.
The removal of this cap was something that the Alberta government and industry were strongly pushing for. The Alberta government isn’t celebrating yet but is waiting to see what happens with future government announcements.
Following the budget's unveiling Carney was in Toronto selling it to a Bay Street audience. When the discussion of pipelines came up he said “we’re on the pipeline stuff, well, something’s going to happen, let’s put it that way.”
The government is also going to cut temporary immigration by about 45%. This means reducing the number of temporary workers and students coming into the country.
Though permanent resident arrivals are going to stay high at about 380,000 per year with the bulk of them being high skilled economic migrants.
These cutbacks are minor and gradually decrease the amount of people coming to Canada. Overall the immigration cutbacks could be more bold.
The budget also commits $150m to CBC to strengthen its mandate and the government itself is working with the CBC to explore Canada’s participation in the Eurovision singing contest.
The public service will also see a gradual reduction by 2029 shedding 40,000 jobs or about 10% of its size. This is something that the Liberals were very critical of the Conservatives about during the election campaign - but look who’s cutting services now.
Overall the budget deficit is bigger than last year's under Trudeau. It’s bigger than the fall economic statement that saw Chrystia Freeland resign and set in motion the path for Trudeau’s resignation.
The goal for this government is to blunt the budget’s deficit edge by splitting up the operating and capital budgets.
For 2025-26 the capital investment deficit is $45.4b increasing to $59.6 by 2029-30.
The operating budget deficit is 33b this year (thus making the $78.4b deficit). This operating deficit will decrease to a $3b surplus by 2029-30.
This is what the government and media has been talking about but it doesn’t scratch the core issue for many Canadians.
Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre in the house said, “This government is the most expensive in Canadian history. Every dollar the Prime Minister spends comes out of the pockets of Canadians – the more they spend, the more things cost... Today, the Liberals have introduced the most costly and largest budget deficit in history outside of COVID. The cost of this Liberal budget will drive up the cost of food, housing, and everything else that Canadians buy.”
The conservatives are calling for a budget that reduces the deficit and focuses on affordability.
That’s the key point.
There are no measures in this budget to address affordability aside from the small personal income tax cut that has already been implemented.
The kicker is that with all the spending and no new affordability measures the government itself is spending $55.6b on debt servicing charges in 2025-26.
They pat themselves on the back and say that this is only 1.8% of gross GDP but that’s almost $56b that could be going to Canadians.
A new Nanos survey out this week said that adults under 55 were more likely now to put off payments for cars, credit cards, and electricity so they could buy food.
And almost 20% of those aged 18-34 say they miss a bill sometimes or often, that number drops drastically to just 4.2% for those aged 55 and older.
Carney’s budget is serving those who elected him, those 55 and up, while everyone else is left to fend for themselves.
Following the budget, hundreds of government staffers, journalists, and Liberal members joined Finance Minister Francois Philippe Champagne at the Métropolitain Brasserie for a post-budget party.
The party was titled “Prudence and Prosecco” that was effectively a post-budget victory lap for the well connected.
Meanwhile regular Canadians sit at home feeling the affordability pinch.
Supplementals:

The BC NDP, while supporting our LNG industry, have been adamant in their denials of support for any new pipeline bringing oil into the province for export along the north coast of BC. BC premier David Eby has often butted heads with Alberta premier Danielle Smith over this matter, and has now taken a further step in drawing a line in the sand to both Alberta, and the federal government.
The B.C. government, along with First Nations groups, signed the North Coast Protection Declaration on Wednesday morning, asking the federal government to uphold the Oil Tanker Moratorium Act.
Bill C-48, known by critics as the "no more pipelines bill", bans ships that hold more than 12,500 metric tons of oil from waters off the north of B.C.’s coast. It includes the area from the northernmost point of Vancouver Island to the Alaskan border. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith wants the tanker ban to be repealed as part of her government’s proposal to build an oil pipeline to the B.C. coast.
There's been a voluntary exclusion zone over the coastal area since 1985, and in 2019, the federal government brought into force its Oil Tanker Moratorium Act, which prohibits oil tankers carrying more than 12,500 metric tons of crude oil or persistent oil to transport it, load or unload it in certain areas of B.C.’s northern waters.
Concern that that longstanding protection could come under threat arose this summer when Ottawa introduced its Building Canada Act, which allows the government to fast-track major projects that it deems to be in the national interest, including by sidestepping existing laws.
Prime Minister Mark Carney came close to telling a Bay Street audience on Friday that he will secure a new pipeline for Alberta, offering his strongest endorsement yet of the idea. During an address to the Canadian Club Toronto, Carney told the audience not to worry because “we’re on the pipeline stuff” without offering any details. But then Carney stopped himself short and said “well, something’s going to happen, let’s put it that way.”
B.C. Premier David Eby said in a statement: “For generations, communities have built and sustained the economy of the North Coast – a legacy that continues today through a multibillion-dollar, sustainable conservation economy that supports thousands of livelihoods in fisheries, tourism, renewable energy and stewardship. Protecting our coast is not a barrier to economic prosperity – it is the source of it.”
Eby said repealing the tanker ban would “risk” near-term major projects and the consequence of a crude oil spill in those waters would be “generations of lost livelihoods and irreversible ecological damage.”
Eby; Chief Marilyn Slett, president of the Coastal First Nations; Mayor Garry Reece, Lax Kw’alaams; Jason Alsop, president of the Haida Nation; Paula Amos with Indigenous Tourism B.C.; and Clarence Innis, hereditary elder, all signed the declaration.
Eby said his government has underlined in multiple meetings with federal ministers and with Prime Minister Mark Carney that the oil tanker ban is a “foundational and critical catalyst” for economic activity in British Columbia.
‘What I’ve heard the federal government say is that they will not advance projects over the objections of the provincial governments or First Nations through the major projects office or otherwise. I think it’s pretty clear today that there is no support for lifting that tanker ban in the province of British Columbia.”
That isn't entirely true of course, as opposition B.C. Conservative leader John Rustad said the announcement on Wednesday was “another attempt to block economic progress” in the province.
Rustad said in a statement: “Rather than advancing nation-building energy projects to diversify markets, create thousands of skilled jobs, and deliver prosperity for our province, the NDP continues to discourage investment. While other countries develop infrastructure and secure long-term prosperity, David Eby allowed B.C. to fall behind based on an ideological refusal to let our resources compete with the rest of the world.”
It's also not true that all First Nations in BC don't want a pipeline either. Some First Nations have expressed support for a new pipeline to B.C.'s coast, saying it could drive economic reconciliation.
Trevor Makadahay, chief of Doig River First Nation near the B.C.–Alberta border, said his community would welcome the economic benefits of a potential project, provided environmental protections and treaty rights are upheld.
“There is a way we can find that balance between the environment, our treaty rights and industry. It’s achievable if both sides are willing to work together.”
Ellis Ross, MP for Skeena-Bulkley Valley and former chief councillor of the Haisla Nation, said there are federal processes designed to ensure consultation with First Nations along any proposed route.
He said that if a project is accepted by the Major Projects Office or the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada for review, “a formal process kicks in to consult and accommodate First Nations.”
Still Eby said in signing the declaration, that there is no actual plan for a pipeline, though: “I’ll point out what is obvious to me and has yet to fully sink in for some individuals is that there is no pipeline project across the north, there is no route, there is no proponent, there is no financing.”
Alberta was also understandably negative towards the declaration as well. Premier Smith’s office said in a statement on Wednesday that “The federal government has control over interprovincial trade and commerce, and the reason for that is so a single parochial premier cannot block the export of the most valuable asset of five million Albertans. The decision to build this pipeline lies solely with Prime Minister Mark Carney and the federal government, and we expect him to act decisively and in support of this project.”
In the end, a pipeline proposal was not on the first list of major projects approved by Mark Carney, mostly because most of those projects were already well on their way to completion, and despite Alberta's stance, there isn't any pipeline proposal currently underweigh, but that's because of federal policy. It's like a chicken and egg argument.
Regardless, David Eby has sent a strong message to his province and the rest of the country. Under his watch, an oil pipeline to the north BC coast will not happen willingly.
Supplementals:

Northern Alberta MLAs criticize 'unacceptable' proposed electoral boundary redraw

Alberta will be gaining two seats in time for the next provincial election bringing the total to 89. Calgary will get 2 and Edmonton will get 1.
This has resulted in boundary changes province wide and rural Alberta losing one seat.
9 northern MLAs have voiced concern over the process.
Scott Sinclair, the Independent MLA for Lesser Slave Lake called the changes “an attack on democracy” and warned about weakening the voice of northern Alberta.
Sinclair brought the data and the numbers are stark. The current Lesser Slave Lake riding is about 70,000km^2 in area.
The proposed Mackenzie riding is about double that. And for comparison sake The Netherlands is about half the size of the current riding.
Sinclair acknowledges that the north is losing population but he also highlighted the vast distances MLAs must travel.
He said, “There’s no way it will be represented properly under these changes. All the northern ridings are basically, from bad to terrible when it comes to being able to just physically drive them. If you can't see people, you're not properly representing them.”
The commission, academics, and those looking at the ridings are mostly looking at them with respect to population growth and rebalancing to bring each riding closer to having it represent a similar number of people.
Bonnyville-Cold Lake-St. Paul MLA Scott Cyr had recommendations for the commission that put together the new boundaries and his changes were taken onboard. His suggestions including fully aligning the County of St. Paul within a single electoral boundary were taken onboard.
Vaughn Jessome who was a constituency manager for MLAs Brian Jean, Tany Yao, and former MLA Guy Boutilier relayed a desire for the northern two ridings covering Fort McMurray to remain as two. The residents of Fort McMurray were also essential to the ridings of Fort McMurray remaining as is.
There is precedent for suggestions brought forward to be heard and changes made.
Brian Jean who is Minister of Energy and Minerals also shared his views on the northern situation, he said, “I am disappointed with impacts [on] other Northern Alberta ridings in this initial draft for new electoral boundaries. To be clear, this review was conducted by an independent judge and a panel with equal participation from both parties.”
The concerns were sent to the commission by 9 northern MLAs including Brian Jean. They say, “the northern constituencies already cover vast geographic areas, representing about 40 per cent of Alberta’s landmass, and that further consolidation would make it increasingly difficult for MLAs to serve their communities effectively.”
The number of northern ridings decreases from 7 to 6.
Political scientists consulted by the media in Alberta treat this as just the way business goes based on the number of people living in a certain area.
But given the vast distances we’re left questioning whether the situation should be that cut and dry.
There have been insinuations in the media that these MLAs see this as a political decision by the commission, however, Brian Jean’s statement and the letter throws cold water on that idea.
Concerned Albertans have until December 19 this year to make a written submission to the boundaries commission about specific boundary concerns.
There are certainly some interesting geographic decisions that were made.
One such case is Mountain View-Kneehill that sees a riding snake north west from just north of Airdrie to its ending point west of Rocky Mountain House which is west of Red Deer.
Banff and Jasper under the proposed plan are in one riding now, however that riding starts on the border of Calgary-Glenmore in the city’s south west and Cochrane Springbank running all the way north to the boundaries of Jasper National Park.
Banff-Jasper changes also led to Calgary West picking up rural neighbourhoods east of highway 22 and south of the Elbow River.
The report says that adding these portions brings the riding closer to the provincial average and the people living here are more closely linked to Calgary than Banff or Jasper.
These are just a few of the anomalies from a quick glance at the map and report. The report has been passed off in the media as providing changes to equalize population numbers.
However, upon a second glance to both the reasoning presented and shear size of some ridings we’re left with more questions than answers.
As mentioned, Albertans have until December 19th to write to the commission.
There is another option: request the legislature either keep the current boundaries or change them to be more favourable to rural Alberta.
Through the Citizen Initiative Act it is possible for Albertans to submit legislative proposals requiring signatures totalling 10% of the total number of votes cast in the last election.
Albertans could ask the government to either abandon these boundaries or adjust the boundaries to address the concerns of large ridings and lack of representation.
The Legislature has the final word on the recommendations of the commission, typically they are accepted because the process of drawing boundaries has been non-partisan in Alberta.
But with many concerns from current MLAs about rural representation amongst other things we should ask if this is a time where the government should step in.
Supplementals:

Firing Line

MP Chris d'Entremont says he joined Liberals because of Poilievre's leadership style

The Conservatives took a bit of a step back this past week, with Nova Scotia MP Chris D'Entremont crossing the floor to the Liberals only days after the budget was announced by Prime Minister Mark Carney.
D'Entremont, who was first elected in West Nova in the 2019 election, the only non Liberal MP from Nova Scotia at that time, was originally seen as the opening for the Conservatives to win more in Atlantic Canada, something that later happened in 2021 under Erin O'Toole but not in enough numbers to secure a Conservative government. In the 2025 election under Pierre Poilievre, D'Entremont returned to being the only non Liberal MP in Nova Scotia, and as of November 4th, he is now a member of the Liberals.
D'Entremont's party crossing came shortly after the tabling of Budget 2025, and with his crossing, the Liberal minority government became two seats away from forming a majority government.
D'Entremont said Wednesday he left the Conservative caucus because he didn't feel represented in leader Pierre Poilievre's party anymore and bristled at his "negative" approach to politics. D'Entremont said there are other Conservative MPs who "are in the same boat" and they may join him in crossing over to Liberals.
D'Entremont appeared with Carney at a post-budget news conference, the day after he crossed the floor, and said: "In the last number of months, I wasn't feeling I was aligned with the ideals of what the leader of the Opposition had been talking about." Asked what pushed him out, d'Entremont said: "It's just looking at leadership styles and whether we're doing the right thing for Canada." D'Entremont said Canada is facing challenges and he felt it was better to be part of the solution to some of those troubles as a member of the government caucus "and not continue to be negative."
He said: "It's time to lead a country to try and make it better and not try to knock it down. We have a great opportunity here in Canada and rather than knocking people down, we should try to find ways to work together, and that's what I've always tried to do in my career."
A self-described Red Tory, d'Entremont said he was also swayed by Carney's first budget, which includes more money for infrastructure, the fishery, farming and the military. Those are crucial industries in his rural Nova Scotia riding, which also includes a Canadian Armed Forces base that stands to gain from the government's defence spending hike.
D'Entremont said the Liberals promised him nothing in return for crossing the floor. Industry Minister Mélanie Joly said the Liberals had been courting d'Entremont behind the scenes for five years.
In an interview on Tuesday, Conservative deputy leader Melissa Lantsman alleged d'Entremont left over a past disagreement over who should serve as deputy Speaker of the House of Commons — a position d'Entremont held in the last Parliament but one that's now occupied by Conservative MP Tom Kmiec.
Conservative MP Aaron Gunn, meanwhile, said d'Entremont's decision to leave was "shameful." On Tuesday night, Gunn called him a "coward," saying: "I could never imagine doing something like that — to misrepresent yourself to voters, to lie to your volunteers. It's only been six months since the election, the leaders are the same, the policies haven't changed. He campaigned against budgets that look just like this."
In the aftermath of the floor crossing, Conservative MP Matt Jeneroux announced Thursday he is resigning from the House of Commons, contrary to speculation he was preparing to defect to the Liberals.
Rumours had swirled all week that the Alberta MP was considering crossing the floor, and Conservative sources had said he was under pressure to stay from some in the party. A senior Liberal source confirmed Jeneroux met with Prime Minister Mark Carney earlier this week.
But Jeneroux says coercion played no role in his decision to leave federal politics: "I want to be clear that there was no coercion involved in my decision to resign. I consider my colleagues in the Conservative Party very close friends, and I will miss them dearly."
A second statement, sent to reporters a few hours later through official party channels, said he spoke to the Conservative leader after his announcement and stressed that it was a desire to spend time with family that motivated his decision to call it quits.
"I had a great conversation with Pierre Poilievre, who wished me all the best, as I do him. I ran under his leadership in hopes we could form a government that would offer hope to Canadians. I wish him and my colleagues all the best as they continue to raise cost living issues facing Canadians," Jeneroux said.
Poilievre publicly thanked Jeneroux for his service — and suggested the MP's official departure could still be months away: "On behalf of our Conservative team, I wish you and your family all the best following your decision to step down as a member of Parliament next spring." Jeneroux later clarified that his "exact date of departure will be determined at a later day," but suggested it would be "this spring."
The floor crossing of D'Entremont and the resignation announcement of Jeneroux prompted a lot of rumours and sensationalist headlines from the media this past week, basing stories around rumours and unnamed sources.
For instance, the CBC notes of one of those sources described Conservative Party Whip Chris Warkentin's pep talk to the caucus as a "kumbaya" moment where he talked about the value of party unity.
A number of MPs who were rumoured to be leaving the party have said they are, in fact, not going to the Liberals. Quebec MP Dominique Vien posted a video on social media reaffirming she is a Conservative.
Most of what the media has been salivating over this past week has not happened, and yet, we did not see any retractions or clarifications. And yet these stories are still out there, already changing the public mood, as if the decision of one floor crosser is the harbinger of doom for Poilievre. We should expect facts and objectivity from our Canadian media, not rumours and sensationalism.
Supplementals:

Quote of the Week

“This government is the most expensive in Canadian history. Every dollar the Prime Minister spends comes out of the pockets of Canadians – the more they spend, the more things cost... Today, the Liberals have introduced the most costly and largest budget deficit in history outside of COVID. The cost of this Liberal budget will drive up the cost of food, housing, and everything else that Canadians buy.” - Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre on Budget 2025.

Word of the Week

Defection - the desertion of one's country or cause in favor of an opposing one

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Show Data

Episode Title: Deficit and Defection
Teaser: Carney’s budget promises capital spending and a huge deficit, David Eby declares BC wants no pipeline to the north coast, and Alberta faces rural redistricting issues. Also, a Nova Scotia MP crosses the floor to the Liberals.
Production Code: WC-443-2025-11-08
Recorded Date: November 8, 2025
Release Date: November 9, 2025
Duration: 1:09:48
Edit Notes: None

Podcast Summary Notes

Duration: XX:XX