“We always have to remember that if the federal government has a deficit, then it means some other sector has a surplus. We need to understand which sector that is and, more importantly, if it’s desirable. In this case, the surplus will likely be created for high-income households and large, foreign-owned companies benefiting from defence spending—they are on the other side of this deficit.”
“This didn’t have to be the case. The government could have provided more support for unemployed workers through better Employment Insurance (EI) or beefed up one of the various low-income transfers. It could also have raised taxes on the rich in order to protect and improve public services.”
Minority governments require negotiation. Every leader met w/ Carney pre-budget; none got anything they asked for. If Carney wanted to “get things done”, then why is he not working with the other elected members of parliament to do so?
Edit: also recent polling doesn’t look that amazing for the Liberals or Carney. The NDP could regain official party status in a new election, and disapproval of Carney and the Liberals has been rising. A majority is still within reach, but it’s not a foregone conclusion IMO.