A return to budgetary deficits carries risks.
From The Hill Times - IAN LEE, SEAN SPEER | The government has committed to running budgetary deficits for the short-term in order to promote economic growth. This was at the heart of the Liberal Party’s election platform and few can argue that it does not have a clear mandate to carry out its policy.
Last week, Finance Minister Bill Morneau confirmed that the government projects deficits of more than $30-billion over the next two years, largely because revenue is now expected to be considerably lower than it had been last April, and even before any new stimulus spending is undertaken. Consider that total revenue for 2016-17 is projected to be 5.6 per cent lower than was set out in the 2015 budget. And this does not account for the government’s high-priced platform commitments such as doubling federal infrastructure spending, increasing child-care benefits by $4-billion per year, and launching major new spending in aboriginal communities.
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