Parliament Hill in Ottawa after Budget 2024 was delivered

Federal Budget 2024 raises capital gains inclusion rates, continues major deficit spending

The raft of ambitious new federal spending commitments in the lead up to Budget 2024 were designed to position the Trudeau government as being a step ahead of challenges such as affordability, the national housing shortage and Canada’s woeful economic productivity. Many of these announcements were also drafted to woo critical Generation Z and Millennial voters […]

Parliament Hill where 2023 Fall Economic Statement was delivered

2023 Fall Economic Statement runs counter to Ottawa’s claims of fiscal prudence

In the 2023 Fall Economic Statement  tabled yesterday, the federal government was keen to boast about maintaining its ‘fiscal anchor’—the budget guardrails that seek to limit spending and deficits. Yet its recent policy commitments suggest otherwise. With debt-servicing costs skyrocketing, the fiscal picture is anything but pleasant. While the 2023 Fall Economic Statement is light […]

House of Commons in Ottawa before the tabling of the 2023 federal budget

The 2023 federal budget: Increased deficits, new green incentives and higher taxes

The 2023 federal budget was widely projected to be one of balance and reaction: specifically, it would walk a tightrope aimed at keeping inflation under control and preparing for a potential economic downturn ahead. It would respond to the Biden Administration’s sweeping Inflation Reduction Act by offering competitive green innovation and business incentives, all to keep […]

Analyzing the 2023 Ontario budget with Toronto skyline in view

2023 Ontario budget warns of economic uncertainty as province’s fiscal health improves

Compared to the 2022 edition, the 2023 Ontario budget is relatively restrained in its spending commitments. That’s due in large part to what various members of Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative government have been eager to signal in the lead-up to budget day: that we’re living in a period of economic uncertainty. Queen’s Park is pulling in […]

a modern house subject to the Underused Housing Tax

Understanding the Underused Housing Tax

For years, housing advocates across Canada have argued that property speculation and overseas investment were a major factor driving up home prices. While academics and industry stakeholders have debated the degree to which that is the case, the federal government took action to address the issue earlier this year by introducing the Underused Housing Tax. […]

office workers discussing 2022 Ontario Fall Economic Statement

Ontario’s 2022 Fall Economic Statement offers tax cuts for small businesses

The Ontario government released its 2022 Fall Economic Statement this week, with Doug Ford’s Conservatives touting improved fiscal news just as the province edges closer to a likely recession next year. Strong GDP performance, higher government revenue and near-full employment have put Ontario on a stronger financial footing—which could be compromised if the economy begins […]

Fall Economic Statement discussed in Toronto business district

Fall Economic Statement 2022 pledges fiscal responsibility while delivering new spending

Inflation remains stubbornly high, holiday season labour shortages are likely to cause havoc for some businesses and the Canadian economy is probably headed into at least a minor recession in early 2023. These headwinds aside, the federal government promised another $22.1 billion in new program spending while pledging greater fiscal responsibility in yesterday’s Fall Economic […]

2022 Ontario budget proposes major transit upgrades

2022 Ontario budget proposes major infrastructure investments, targeted tax credits

After more than two years of pandemic-related bad news, massive deficits and dire fiscal predictions, the Progressive Conservatives were clearly eager to drive home a message with the 2022 Ontario budget: We plan to build. That includes highways, schools, hospitals—you name it. The pre-election budget is not short on spending. In fact, it proposes a […]

home buying

Federal Budget 2022—Home-buying, climate change and personal tax highlights

The federal government approached Budget 2022 under immense pressure to address skyrocketing inflation, amid widespread uncertainty as we enter a sixth wave of the coronavirus pandemic and facing global supply chain woes and a geopolitical crisis stemming from the war in Ukraine. Factor in the Liberals’ minority government status—one stabilized by a recent confidence-and-supply agreement […]

Budget 2022 engineer focusing on innovation

Federal Budget 2022 offers minor tax relief for business, funding for innovation

The federal government’s Budget 2022 contained several new proposed measures, both from a personal and corporate tax perspective, in addition to various new spending initiatives and tax credits. These measures will have some impact on the business community, but when it comes to Canada’s economic outlook as a whole—including strategies to manage runaway inflation and […]