With just months left in 2025, Prime Minister Mark Carney’s Liberals are launching a high-stakes fall session on Parliament Hill focused on trade tensions, major nation-building projects, and an ambitious budget that promises both spending restraint and new investments.
Trade talks will take centre stage as Ottawa pushes Washington for relief from sectoral tariffs on steel, aluminum, and autos while preparing for next year’s CUSMA review. Carney heads to Mexico this week to meet President Claudia Sheinbaum as U.S. President Donald Trump pressures NATO allies to join him in targeting Chinese exports. Meanwhile, Canadian officials are weighing whether to drop tariffs on Chinese EVs as part of a broader reset in global trade strategy.
The session will also see Carney’s new Major Projects Office accelerate approvals for five priority developments, including LNG expansion in B.C., a small modular nuclear reactor in Ontario, and copper mining projects in Saskatchewan and B.C. Critics, however, warn that the federal cabinet now holds too much power to override environmental protections and Indigenous consultation processes.
In October, Carney will table his first federal budget, delayed since spring. Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne has ordered a 15 per cent cut in public service spending over three years to free up funds for housing, defence, and infrastructure — a move meant to balance fiscal discipline with long-term investment. Ottawa also faces pressure to ramp up defence spending to meet NATO targets.
Adding political drama, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre returns to the House of Commons after his byelection win in Alberta, ready to confront the government on housing costs, bail reform, immigration, and the paused EV mandate. He has pledged limited co-operation on trade negotiations with Trump but is expected to challenge Carney at every turn.
Key bills up for debate include C-2, the Strong Borders Act, which tightens asylum rules and broadens surveillance powers; C-3, expanding the Citizenship Act to allow Canadians to pass citizenship to children born abroad; and C-4, cutting the lowest federal tax bracket to give households an average $280 in annual savings.
With a fragile minority government, Carney faces the challenge of pushing through major priorities while defending against opposition attacks and managing public expectations heading into 2026.