'This is not a game,' Carney says as he signals he's ready to fight election over federal budget
CBC
Prime Minister Mark Carney signalled on Saturday that he’s prepared to fight an election over his government’s upcoming budget should it come to that.
The fiscal plan will be tabled in the minority Parliament on Tuesday, but it is far from clear whether the governing Liberals have the support of opposition parties.
At the closing of the APEC summit in South Korea, he talked up the benefits of what his government is planning to invest in and do in the future, but he avoided directly answering whether he believes there are enough votes in the House of Commons to get it through.
“I am 100 per cent confident that this budget is the right budget for this country — at this moment,” Carney said before boarding the plane to return home.
“This is not a game. This is a critical moment in the global economy — or an important moment in the global economy. It's a critical one for our country."
Losing the budget vote would plunge the country into an election a little more than six months after the last campaign.
Carney was asked whether he was prepared to fight an election on the upcoming fiscal plan.
“I'm always prepared to stand up for the right thing,” he responded.
On Tuesday, Carney said the Liberals will begin the process of making what he calls "generational investments” in the Canadian economy and the country’s infrastructure. He plans to restructure the way federal finances are presented and promises to bring Canada's operating account back into balance within three years.
The Conservatives and the NDP are doing a lot of soul-searching this weekend.
For the Conservatives there’s the political optics of supporting an agenda they don’t like.
Even still, Conservative sources have told CBC News that they don't want to fight an election right now but will do it if they have to.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has made a series of demands, including scrapping the industrial carbon tax and keeping the deficit below $42 billion.
The Parliamentary Budget Officer estimates the shortfall in the current budget year will be $46 billion but will rise to $75 billion next year.
Saskatoon city hall says police spending is projected to be $2.6 million over budget this year. That pushes the city into a $1.2-million deficit position, according to a report that will be considered by city council next week.
Students at the University of Regina are days away from deciding whether a newly formed student association should become their official representative body.
All public schools on P.E.I. are closed Friday and thousands of Maritime Electric customers are without power as strong winds create hazardous travel conditions across the province.
Prince Rupert, B.C., residents are celebrating the holidays this year with coastal flair.
In the four years Chelsey Simmonds has worked at the Eva Rothwell Centre, she has seen the need increase every year at the centre’s community food pantry.
CBC is once again looking to make the holiday season kind in Windsor-Essex.
Acute Care Alberta has extended its contract for another year with a private surgical facility at the centre of probes into health procurement and contracting.
As food bank use continues to climb across the province, front-line workers in Thunder Bay, Ont., are working to improve both food security and education.
More ads could soon be coming to Toronto’s subway system.
The driver wanted in connection with a fatal hit and run on Highway 401 earlier this week has been identified, police say.
There are mixed feelings about the proposed Grays Bay road and port project, among people who live in nearby communities.
WARNING: This story details allegations of child abuse and includes graphic content.
Provincial police in Lambton County have charged a 23-year-old man with second degree murder following a death investigation that began this past Saturday.