David Raymond Amos @DavidRayAmos
Replying to @DavidRayAmos @Kathryn98967631 and 47 others
Methinks many would agree that Trudeau The Younger makes a great ringmaster for the circus Harper 2.0 is far too boring N'esy Pas?
https://davidraymondamos3.blogspot.com/2019/03/marathon-vote-session-rocked-by.html
#nbpoli #cdnpoli
https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/marathon-vote-philpott-1.5065470
Marathon vote session rocked by Philpott interview on SNC-Lavalin, cabinet resignation
Former cabinet minister Jane Philpott says there's 'much more to the story'
LIVE
CBC News
House of Commons LIVE
Conservatives trigger marathon voting session in House of Commons amid SNC-Lavalin concerns 0:00
The Conservatives' marathon vote protest in the Commons got an added boost this morning from Jane Philpott's interview in Maclean's magazine — in which she says there's "much more to the story" of the SNC-Lavalin controversy.
The House of Commons is engaged in round-the-clock voting that has kept MPs close to their seats overnight. The Conservative Opposition triggered the voting marathon after the Liberal-dominated justice committee shut down further investigation into the SNC-Lavalin affair.
The voting got underway around 6 p.m. ET Wednesday, with members voting on every single line of the Liberal
government's spending plans.
Philpott's interview with Maclean's — her first substantial interview since resigning from cabinet earlier this month — set official Ottawa buzzing and is certain to dominate the SNC-Lavalin conversation to
In the story, the Liberal MP said she had concerns about the government's handling of the SNC-Lavalin case before the controversy became public in January. She alleged Canadians have been prevented from hearing more about what went on in government circles due to efforts by the Prime Minister's Office to "shut down the story."
The Conservatives' marathon vote protest in the Commons got an added boost this morning from Jane Philpott's interview in Maclean's magazine — in which she says there's "much more to the story" of the SNC-Lavalin controversy.
The House of Commons is engaged in round-the-clock voting that has kept MPs close to their seats overnight. The Conservative Opposition triggered the voting marathon after the Liberal-dominated justice committee shut down further investigation into the SNC-Lavalin affair.
The voting got underway around 6 p.m. ET Wednesday, with members voting on every single line of the Liberal
government's spending plans.
Philpott's interview with Maclean's — her first substantial interview since resigning from cabinet earlier this month — set official Ottawa buzzing and is certain to dominate the SNC-Lavalin conversation to
In the story, the Liberal MP said she had concerns about the government's handling of the SNC-Lavalin case before the controversy became public in January. She alleged Canadians have been prevented from hearing more about what went on in government circles due to efforts by the Prime Minister's Office to "shut down the story."
"My sense is that Canadians would like to know the whole story," Philpott said.
Politics News
PM busted for bringing food in the Commons
MPs are beging a marathon voting session expected to go through the night 1:06
'Waste of public funds:' May
The opposition wants the Liberal government to fully waive cabinet confidence restrictions and allow former justice minister and attorney general Jody Wilson-Raybould to return to committee to answer questions about her decision to resign from cabinet in February.
Wilson-Raybould has alleged that officials in the Prime Minister's Office and elsewhere in government inappropriately pressured her to clear a remediation agreement for SNC-Lavalin — which would have allowed the company to avoid a criminal trial on bribery charges. In January, she was shuffled out of her cabinet post — a move she said was punishment for not following the PMO's marching orders.
This morning, Conservative MP Pierre Poilievre raised the interview on a point of order, arguing Liberals MPs should reverse their decision to halt the justice committee's SNC-Lavalin inquiry.
"As much as I agree with the motivation of my friends in the Conservative Party, this is a huge waste of public funds and resources," said Green Party Leader Elizabeth May, referring to the voting marathon.
Now is normally the time when government MPs fan out across the country to sell their constituents on a new budget. But because each of these votes deals with fiscal matters, they're considered votes of confidence.
Trudeau is having taxpayer-funded cozy cots set up in House of Commons to nap during all-night votes. Not a joke! #BeautySleep
Losing a confidence vote can trigger a general election. So Liberal MPs have been sticking close to their desks — although Trudeau was able to sneak away to Mississauga, Ont., today for an infrastructure announcement before returning to his seat.
There was a moment of tension in the House Thursday afternoon when the opposition charged that dozens of Liberal MPs had entered the chamber after one of the questions to be voted on was still being read.
As deputy Speaker Anthony Rota was still reading the question, Liberal MP Kevin Lamoureux rose to complain that he could not hear it — a move that gave some Liberal MPs time to make it to their seats.
Opposition members, sensing that they might have the government cornered on a confidence vote, told Rota that those Liberal MPs who entered the House late were ineligible to vote.
After a prolonged and heated debate, Rota ruled that it was not up to him to monitor attendance and left it to the "honour" of individual MPs to decide whether they were eligible to vote when the question was read.
Rota read the question a second time, the vote went ahead and the government survived (several Liberal MPs rescinded their votes afterwards).
That was voted down by the Liberal majority.
Last week, upset with the government's handling of the SNC Lavalin affair, the Tories put forward 257 separate motions to oppose specific proposed funding allotments in the supplementary and interim estimates, two pieces of legislation now being debated in the House of Commons.
"We are prepared to vote on every single one of the 257 motions we have tabled," said Kelsie Chiasson, a spokesperson for the Office of the Leader of the Official Opposition. "Whether we do or not will be up to the Liberals. All they have to do is waive privilege and let Ms. Wilson-Raybould speak."
Institutions Minister Karina Gould, who gave birth last year, has taken to her Instagram to document all the times she's had to leave the floor to pump breast milk.
Since the voting has extended past 10 a.m., Thursday's agenda has been preempted. Committee meetings scheduled for Thursday have been cancelled.
With files from the Canadian Press
CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices
4675 Comments
Commenting is now closed for this story.
Myke Letki
Trudeau has to go!
David R. Amos
Reply to @Myke Letki: Methinks many would agree that Trudeau The Younger makes a great ringmaster for the circus Harper 2.0 is far too boring N'esy Pas?
David R. Amos
Reply to @Myke Letki: Methinks the silly parliamentary games of the Harper 2.0 crowd obviously failed but Philpott's interview with Maclean's may assist in making your wish come true N'esy Pas?
John Smith
At first he was cute now he just creeps me out when I see and hear him.
Never vote for a world traveling trust fund child who never had a full time job .
David R. Amos
Reply to @John Smith: Methinks most men don't care if Trudeau is cute or not but I bet many were impressed when he had the sand to step into the ring and duke it out with Senator Brazeau N'esy Pas?
Scott Wesley
How about we just find out what really happened, and we can get on with our lives? Trudeau is silencing these women, and it's a disgrace to the nation.
David R. Amos
Reply to @Scott Wesley: "Trudeau is silencing these women, and it's a disgrace to the nation"
Relax its just a circus
Jay La
everyone knows theres a scandal except for the liberals, that tells me everything I need to know.
David R. Amos
Reply to @Jay La: "that tells me everything I need to know."
Methinks folks should be concerned as to who was calling the PMO and the PCO N'esy Pas?
Don Cameron
"Former cabinet minister Jane Philpott says there's 'much more to the story'"
Most of us figured that out weeks ago.
A constantly changing story from Trudeau, unprecedented resignations, selective 'unmuzzling' of JWR.
This story still has a long way to go. The Liberals are dragging it out.
David R. Amos
Reply to @Don Cameron: "This story still has a long way to go. The Liberals are dragging it out"
YUP.
Paul Ethier
If only there was some way that the criminality of the Trudeau regime could be very publicly exposed.
David R. Amos
Reply to @Paul Ethier: Dream on
Earl Sargent
You can BS some Canadians some of the time. But you can not BS all Canadians all the time. Let her talk Justin.
David R. Amos
Content disabled
Reply to @Earl Sargent: Methinks the real question can the liberal BS enough Canadians to win a second mandate for Trudeau N'esy Pas?
David R. Amos
Reply to @Earl Sargent: "You can BS some Canadians some of the time. But you can not BS all Canadians all the time."
Methinks the same can be said of the Harper 2.0 Party N'esy Pas?
"As much as I agree with the motivation of my friends in the Conservative Party, this is a huge waste of public funds and resources," said Green Party Leader Elizabeth May, referring to the voting marathon"
Frank Blakney
Shutting this inquiry just makes them look guilty of trying to hide much more than what has been released to the Public. It will not go away. Best to deal with it 'head on' instead of trying to sweep under the rug.
Adam Gajewski
Reply to @Frank Blakney:
Too late. The Crow is stone cold.
The best ever advice I got in my life was: eat the crow while it is still hot...
David R. Amos
Reply to @Adam Gajewski: "The best ever advice I got in my life was: eat the crow while it is still hot"
You were wise to take such advice seriously
Glechren Davies
There is no other way to put it, pure and simple, crystal clear.
Justin Trudeau cannot lead. Now or in the future. He is a failure.
Gerry Atrich
Reply to @Glechren Davies: " There is no other way to put it, pure and simple, crystal clear.
Justin Trudeau cannot lead. Now or in the future. He is a failure "
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The next LPC leader won't be any different. The problem is the LPC itself.
David R. Amos
Reply to @Gerry Atrich: "The next LPC leader won't be any different. The problem is the LPC itself."
I concur but the other parties are no better
Steve Kirk
And the hits just keep comin' folks!
David R. Amos
Reply to @Steve Kirk: Methinks that is the nature of the wicked game N'esy Pas?
Updated
Marathon Commons vote ends, but Philpott interview raises new questions about SNC-Lavalin affair
Former cabinet minister Jane Philpott says in magazine interview there's 'much more to the story'
The Conservatives' marathon vote protest in the Commons ended in the wee hours this morning, but their cause got an added boost after Maclean's magazine ran an interview with Jane Philpott saying there's "much more to the story" when it comes to the SNC-Lavalin controversy.
The Conservative Opposition triggered the voting marathon in Ottawa after the Liberal-dominated justice committee shut down further investigation into the SNC-Lavalin affair. For more than 30 hours, the House of Commons was engaged in round-the-clock voting that kept MPs close to their seats.
The voting got underway around 6 p.m. ET Wednesday and continued until almost 1 a.m. ET Friday, with members voting line by line on the Liberal government's spending plans.
CBC News
Marathon House of Commons voting session ends
It's over: See the end of the House of Commons voting session, which ran for more than 30 hours 0:37
Philpott's interview with Maclean's — her
first substantial interview since resigning from cabinet earlier this
month — set official Ottawa buzzing and is certain to dominate the
SNC-Lavalin conversation."My sense is that Canadians would like to know the whole story," Philpott said.
"I believe we actually owe it to Canadians as politicians to ensure that they have the truth. They need to have confidence in the very basic constitutional principle of the independence of the justice system."
'Waste of public funds:' May
The Conservatives want the Liberal government to fully waive cabinet confidence restrictions and allow former justice minister and attorney general Jody Wilson-Raybould to return to committee to answer questions about her decision to resign from cabinet in February.
Wilson-Raybould has alleged that officials in the Prime Minister's Office and elsewhere in government inappropriately pressured her to clear a remediation agreement for SNC-Lavalin — which would have allowed the company to avoid a criminal trial on bribery charges. In January, she was shuffled out of her cabinet post — a move she said was punishment for not following the PMO's marching orders.
"As much as I agree with the motivation of my friends in the Conservative Party, this is a huge waste of public funds and resources," said Green Party Leader Elizabeth May, referring to the voting marathon.
Now is normally the time when government MPs fan out across the country to sell their constituents on a new budget. But because each of these votes deals with fiscal matters, they're considered votes of confidence.
Losing a confidence vote can trigger a general election. So Liberal MPs were generally sticking close to their desks — although Trudeau was able to sneak away to Mississauga, Ont., for an infrastructure announcement before returning to his seat.
Confidence vote confusion
There was a moment of tension in the House Thursday afternoon when the opposition charged that dozens of Liberal MPs had entered the chamber after one of the questions to be voted on was still being read.
As deputy Speaker Anthony Rota was still reading the question, Liberal MP Kevin Lamoureux rose to complain that he could not hear it — a move that gave some Liberal MPs time to make it to their seats. Opposition members, sensing that they might have the government cornered on a confidence vote, told Rota that those Liberal MPs who entered the House late were ineligible to vote.
After a prolonged and heated debate, Rota ruled that it was not up to him to monitor attendance and left it to the "honour" of individual MPs to decide whether they were eligible to vote when the question was read.
Rota read the question a second time, the vote went ahead and the government survived (several Liberal MPs rescinded their votes afterwards).
Politics News
PM busted for bringing food in the Commons
MPs are beging a marathon voting session expected to go through the night 1:06
On
Wednesday, the Conservatives put forward a motion calling on the
government to have the Commons "take note" of Wilson-Raybould's comments
about the SNC-Lavalin affair,
and asking the prime minister to waive solicitor-client privilege to
allow her to speak publicly about the January cabinet shuffle.
That was voted down by the Liberal majority.
Last week, upset with the government's handling of the SNC Lavalin affair, the Tories put forward 257 separate motions to oppose specific proposed funding allotments in the supplementary and interim estimates.
Cots
were brought into the West Block to allow members to sleep in shifts
and multiple MPs were called out for sneaking food and wearing
sweatshirts in the House. Democratic Institutions Minister Karina Gould,
who gave birth last year, took to her Instagram to document all the
times she's had to leave the floor to pump breast milk.
Since the voting was extended past 10 a.m., Thursday's agenda was preempted. Committee meetings scheduled for Thursday were cancelled.
That was voted down by the Liberal majority.
Last week, upset with the government's handling of the SNC Lavalin affair, the Tories put forward 257 separate motions to oppose specific proposed funding allotments in the supplementary and interim estimates.
Since the voting was extended past 10 a.m., Thursday's agenda was preempted. Committee meetings scheduled for Thursday were cancelled.
With files from The Canadian Press
https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/justice-committee-snc-in-camera-1.5062188
Morneau's budget speech drowned out by shouts of 'let her speak'
Opposition angry justice committee ended probe into SNC-Lavalin affair
After a delay in the House of Commons, federal Finance Minister Bill Morneau was finally able deliver his budget speech this evening — even though nobody could hear it at first.
Morneau tabled his government's 2019 budget just before 4 p.m., getting around a threat by the Opposition Conservatives to stir up a disruption because Liberal MPs on the justice committee had shut down an investigation into the SNC-Lavalin affair.
But his budget speech was delayed by procedural votes. When he did stand to speak, he was drowned out by Opposition MPs banging on their desks and chanting "let her speak" — a reference to Jody Wilson-Raybould, whose resignation from cabinet last month over the SNC-Lavalin controversy has left the government on the defensive for weeks.
CBC News
Conservative MP jeers drown out Bill Morneau
Conservative MPs banged on desks and jeered loudly during Finance Minister Bill Morneau's budget speech making it nearly impossible to hear what Morneau was trying to say. 0:26
The Conservatives had threatened all day to disrupt the vote in hopes of delaying Morneau's speech to make a point about the justice committee.
However, Morneau shocked many observers when he rose in the House and tabled the budget document anyway. That meant the lockups — where reporters and stakeholders were anxiously waiting for clearance to file their work — were released on time and the contents of the budget were made public.
Read more of CBC's budget coverage here:
When the finance minister began speaking around 5 p.m. ET, he was drowned out by thunderous noise.
Speaker Geoff Regan tried to intervene multiple times with calls for order, but those requests were disobeyed.
Conservative MPs eventually walked out of the Commons, with Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer calling the justice committee's decision "an assault on democracy."
Justice investigation ends
The justice committee was looking into allegations the Prime Minister's Office and other officials inappropriately pressured Jody Wilson-Raybould, justice minister and attorney general at the time, to allow Quebec engineering firm SNC-Lavalin to avoid criminal prosecution on bribery charges providing it met certain conditions in a remediation agreement.
After about two hours, members of the Conservative Party and the NDP emerged and said the Liberals — who hold the majority on the committee — voted in favour of a motion to "consider the meetings on this topic to be concluded."
CBC News
Scheer threatens emergency parliamentary actions
Leader of the Official
Opposition Andrew Scheer threatens emergency actions to ensure Canadians
hear the whole story on the SNC-Lavalin affair. 0:34
Scheer told reporters that the Tories "will consider emergency actions in Parliament to stop this coverup and highlight what (Prime Minister) Justin Trudeau has done.""This is an abuse of power. It's an affront to democracy and an attack on Parliament," Scheer told reporters Tuesday after the committee finished meeting behind closed doors.
"This is corruption on top of corruption on top of corruption."
Trudeau said the Conservatives are desperate to discuss anything except the budget and the state of the economy.
"I think it's quite interesting that the Conservatives desperately don't want to talk about the economy. I think a lot of people will raise an eyebrow at that," he told reporters before heading into question period, where the SNC-Lavalin scandal once again dominated.
"They have no plan. They've never had a plan to grow the economy."
Opposition wanted to hear from Wilson-Raybould
The NDP said it would not partake in the Conservatives' plan to put off the budget speech, but renewed calls for a public inquiry.
"This is outrageous. They just want to keep Canadians in the dark. We need to launch a public inquiry now," said NDP MP Murray Rankin, the party's justice critic.
Opposition MPs had been pushing for Wilson-Raybould to return to the committee to talk about why she later resigned from cabinet.
Wilson-Raybould testified for nearly four hours during her appearance in front of the committee last month, but has said she has more to say.
"If there was ever evidence needed that Liberal MPs on the justice committee are agents of the prime minister, doing the work of the prime minister to cover up the prime minister's misdeeds, then one need only look at what happened at this meeting today, where the Liberals have shut down the process," said Conservative MP Michael Cooper, a vice-chair of the committee.
CBC News
Trudeau on the Conservatives and the economy
Prime Minister Justin
Trudeau explains that he thinks the reason the Conservatives want to
talk about SNC-Lavalin is that they have no plan for the economy. 0:45
"We have heard from many of the key players in this matter," he said. "It's time now for the justice committee to do its work."
The five Liberal members signalled their intentions Monday night when they wrote to committee chair Anthony Housefather saying their work is done, and that any further examination of the SNC-Lavalin affair should be left to the conflict of interest and ethics commissioner.
"As committee members, we have achieved our objectives with respect to these meetings," the letter said. "Following the testimony of all witnesses, we believe that all the rules and laws were followed.
CBC News
Boissonnault on the end of the SNC-Lavalin study
Alberta Liberal MP Randy Boissonnault explains the Liberal majority on the Justice Committee ended the study of the SNC-Lavalin affair. 0:32
Liberals blame opposition
The day started on a sour note.
Soon after the committee meeting started Tuesday, Opposition MPs left the committee rooms, accusing the Liberals of making a mockery of the in-camera proceedings after a document detailing a motion related to hate crimes was handed to reporters and subsequently tweeted out.
Conservative MP Lisa Raitt said it called into question what is actually in camera and what is not.
"This is yet another effort to change the channel," added Rankin.
In the letter signed by Boissonnault, Iqra Khalid, Ali Ehsassi, Ron McKinnon and Colin Fraser, the Liberal MPs on the committee write that they set out to probe the allegations with an "open mind," but accuse the opposition MPs of falling short.
"We note that the opposition parties rushed to judgment even before hearing all the relevant information," the letter said.
While he called the move 'retirement', he acknowledged there is "no path" for him to have a "relationship of mutual trust and respect" with opposition party leaders following what critics described as his partisan statements before the committee on the SNC-Lavalin affair.
He has denied making "veiled threats" to pressure Wilson-Raybould.
With files from the CBC's Peter Zimonjic and The Canadian Press
CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/bill-morneau-budget-2019-1.5061476
Liberals table a pre-election budget designed to ease Canadians' anxieties
Seniors, skilled workers and millennials targeted for new investments in 2019 spending plan
Finance Minister Bill Morneau tabled a pre-election budget today designed to calm Canadians worried about retiring with financial security, getting the skills they need to land new jobs, or being able to afford a first home.
Morneau's fourth budget — a springboard for the Liberal platform heading into the fall election campaign — delivers few big-ticket, signature programs but offers several new lower-cost programs that target key electoral constituencies: millennials, workers, businesses and seniors.
"There's a growing sense of uncertainty taking root around the world, and Canada is not immune to those worries," Morneau said.
The minister was scheduled to deliver the speech just after 4 p.m. ET in the House of Commons after the markets closed. But the Conservatives — outraged by the Liberals' decision to shut down the Commons justice committee's study of the SNC-Lavalin affair instead of recalling former justice minister Jody Wilson-Raybould to testify — delayed it by dragging out a vote on a motion about MP travel. Morneau tabled his budget and left the House without giving the speech. When he eventually returned and rose to speak, opposition members tried to drown him out by banging on their desks.
The thumping and shouts of "let her speak" and "coverup" were so loud that people gathered in the public gallery could not hear what Morneau was saying. He carried on with his speech; the Conservatives eventually staged a walkout from the chamber as he spoke.
CBC News
Conservative MP jeers drown out Bill Morneau
Conservative MPs banged
on desks and jeered loudly during Finance Minister Bill Morneau's budget
speech making it nearly impossible to hear what Morneau was trying to
say. 0:26
A national pharmacare program has been a marquee Liberal promise for years. This budget doesn't earmark significant money to create one — but it does set aside $35 million to create a Canadian Drug Agency that will build on work already done by provinces and territories on bulk drug purchases and negotiate better prices for prescription medicine.
There's also $1 billion to help Canadians with rare diseases access the high-cost drugs they need, though that money doesn't kick in until 2022.
Boosts for first-time home buyers
The budget targets two major voting blocs: millennials and senior citizens.
Morneau said many hard-working young people see buying a home as an "impossibility." The government wants to change that with a new shared mortgage program that could offset the purchase price by up to 10 per cent.
The budget also boosts the amount that can be withdrawn from RRSPs for a first-time home purchase — to $35,000 from the current $25,000.
CBC News
Opposition leaders react to Budget 2019
Conservative Leader
Andrew Scheer, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, People's Party of Canada Leader
Maxime Bernier and Green Party Leader Elizabeth May react to the
Liberal government's Budget 2019. 2:30
The budget also introduces safeguards to protect pensions in the event of company bankruptcies, and offers supports to community projects that improve the lives of vulnerable seniors.
"Women and men who have worked hard their entire lives … deserve a secure and dignified retirement, free of financial worries," Morneau said.
The Liberals had pledged to run deficits to finance a massive infrastructure program, but broke their promise to return to balance by 2019.
Former Saskatchewan finance minister Janice MacKinnon predicts that could be a problem for many voters.
CBC News
Finance Minister Bill Morneau's full budget speech
After Conservative MPs
stopped pounding on desks and jeering they walked out of the House of
Commons and Morneau restarted his budget speech. Here it is in full. 29:10
"They've broken other promises, (like) electoral reform, but at least they tried. They gave it a shot. There was never, in the term so far of this government, an attempt to restrain spending."
Deficit projections
The budget projects a $20-billion deficit next year, which is scheduled to fall to $15 billion two years later, then to $10 billion in 2023-2024.
Morneau said Canadians are also nervous about the labour market and the mismatch between their skills and those employers are seeking. The budget introduces a new, non-taxable Canada Training Benefit designed to help Canadians plan and pay for skills training. It includes a benefit with income supports covering the worker's training period.
"Canadians at all stages in their working lives should have the opportunity to learn new skills to take control of their future," Morneau said.
But MacKinnon said there's no data to show exactly which skills are being sought by emerging job sectors. She said the government has failed to collect that crucial data, leading to a "mismatch" between skills training and what employers need.
Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer said the budget has no legitimacy, arguing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is spending tens of billions of dollars on a desperate attempt to distract from the SNC-Lavalin scandal that has engulfed his government for weeks.
"This is the most expensive coverup in the history of coverups," he said. "Deficit spending today, to cover up a scandal, to be paid for by higher taxes after the election."
Scheer said his caucus members walked out during Morneau's speech to make a point.
"It is not business as usual, and we could not stand by and pretend otherwise," he said.
- The creation of dedicated real estate audit teams at the Canada Revenue Agency to tackle tax non-compliance and money laundering in the housing market.
- An additional $739 million over five years to repair water systems on First Nations reserves.
- $1.2 billion over three years to help First Nations children access health and social services.
- A commitment to ensure access to high-speed internet by 2030 across the country.
- A federal purchase incentive of up to $5,000 for electric battery or hydrogen fuel cell vehicles with sticker prices of less than $45,000.
- Working with the Federation of Canadian Municipalities to offer funds to support retrofits, such as hot water systems or rooftop solar panels, that make homes and businesses more energy efficient.
Morneau defends deficits
In a news conference, Morneau defended the government's decision to continue running deficits, arguing the Conservative plan to "balance the budget at any cost" would mean deep cuts that harm Canadians.
"We are convinced that if we took their approach, we'd be back in the situation in 2015 that they left us with — stubbornly high rates of unemployment and, as we came into office … two quarters of negative growth, which economists will tell you is a recession," he said.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said the budget does nothing to build much-needed affordable housing, and suggested the RRSP measure will be of little help since most millennials haven't stashed that much away.
"I think they've made certain investment decisions, certain expenditure decisions that should position Canadians for the economy going forward, particularly an innovative economy," he said.
"But this budget isn't it. I think this is a fairly modest budget that is politically focused and moves their agenda forward, but not in a particularly ambitious way. It's a way that focuses on the upcoming election."
Clarifications
- This story has been updated from an earlier version to clarify that the budget includes $8.1 billion over the next five years for programs under Indigenous Services and for land claims and other initiatives under Crown-Indigenous Relations.Mar 19, 2019 10:12 PM ET
With files from David Thurton, Peter Zimonjic
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