Federal budget gets thumbs up from Guelph mayor, MP

Two Guelph politicians believe the federal budget will benefit Royal City residents.

Finance minister Chrystia Freeland presented the 2024 budget in the House of Commons on Tuesday.

A total of $535 billion is going to be spent, including $11.5 billion in new spending. $8.5 billion of that is to help more new homes to be built, something Guelph Mayor Cam Guthrie was glad to see.

“All municipalities were trying to figure out whether or not there would be any further investment in that,” he said. “The details, of course, need to be flushed out. But it is good to see that is still on the list.”

Guthrie also emphasized that all three levels of government need to work together to address the housing issue both in Guelph and across Canada.

The budget also includes $1 billion over the next five years for a national school food program.

“The federal government is stepping and saying ‘we have to do more’,” said Guelph Liberal MP Lloyd Longfield. “We’ve seen the Children’s Foundation and the work they are doing, the food for kids program that the Rotary Club has been involved with, and the Willow Road West neighbourhood group.”

Freeland said this budget aims to provide “generational fairness”. $2.6 billion will go towards easing education costs and creating more job opportunities for Millennials and Generation Z.

She said that and other new programs will be covered, in part, by raising the capital gains taxes on the wealthiest Canadians. But Guthrie believes that might result in businesses in town being negatively affected.

“There can be a cooling of some investments that are needed knowing that the (capital gains) taxes will be higher,” said Guthrie. “It could also affect innovation businesses because they will have to look through a different lens because of this increase.”

Longfield, on the other hand, said this will only affect the top 0.13 percent of earners in Canada.

“The capital gains part of the budget is going to help us will bring fairness to all the generations that are going through the current economic cycle.”

Despite a supply-and-confidence agreement the Liberals and the New Democrats, NDP leader Jagmeet Singh has not indicated whether he or his party will support the budget possibly triggering an election.

“We presented what we think is a progressive budget, one that is going to address fairness,” said Longfield. “But we also have to hear from other parliamentarians. That’s how Canada works. Hopefully we will hear from the NDP when the budget is discussed in the house.”

— with files from the Canadian Press