OTTAWA — Prime Minister Mark Carney is set to deliver a speech Wednesday outlining the difficult fiscal choices his Liberal government faces as it prepares to table its first federal budget on November 4.
Carney will address a group of university students — a deliberate choice, officials say, to engage young Canadians who will feel the long-term effects of his government’s economic blueprint. The budget is expected to balance spending restraint with targeted investments in key national priorities.
The prime minister’s office confirmed Carney has been consulting opposition leaders in advance of the budget. After meetings earlier this week with the NDP and Green Party leaders, he sat down Wednesday with Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, who emphasized affordability and fiscal discipline.
“Canadians deserve an affordable budget that leads to an affordable life,” Poilievre said ahead of the meeting. “That means getting government spending under control and cutting inflationary taxes that drive up the cost of living.”
The minority Liberal government, just months into its mandate, remains three votes short of a majority and will need the support or abstention of at least one opposition party to pass the budget. A failure to do so would trigger a confidence vote and potentially a general election.
Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet, who also met with Carney earlier Wednesday, said his party’s support will depend on whether the Liberals meet a list of long-standing conditions. “They know our conditions,” Blanchet said. “If they wake up too late, that’s their problem.”
Carney has so far declined to reveal details of the fiscal plan, saying only that his upcoming address will “convey the message directly.”
The government is preparing the budget amid mounting economic uncertainty, fueled by U.S. tariffs and global instability. Carney is expected to travel later this week to Asia for a series of economic summits just days before the budget presentation.
Within Liberal ranks, there is cautious optimism that Parliament will avoid an early election. “Canadians are not in the mood for another campaign,” said Liberal MP Mark Gerretsen. “They want to see a government that works with all parties.”
Fellow MP Corey Hogan echoed that sentiment: “With a trade war brewing and the world becoming increasingly volatile, Canadians expect pragmatic solutions — and an election isn’t one of them.”