Alberta’s finance minister speaks to the Calgary Chamber of Commerce on Friday in an attempt to sell the province’s business community on the new provincial budget that is big on spending but also carries an eye-popping deficit of more than $9 billion.
Nate Horner tabled the 2026 budget in the Alberta legislature on Thursday, saying that while a rising population and low oil prices have put the squeeze on finances, it’s critical to keep spending and weather the storm.
The Opposition NDP accuses Premier Danielle Smith’s United Conservative government of mismanaging the economy, wasting profits from the past oil boom and saddling future generations with billions of dollars in debt.
The mayors of Alberta’s two biggest cities have very different views of the budget, with Calgary’s Jeromy Farkas taking issue with a big jump in the amount Calgarians will pay towards the education property tax, while Edmonton Mayor Andrew Knack says he knows the hike is needed to properly pay for schools.
The tax increase will cost the typical homeowner in Calgary $340 more a year and $154 more in Edmonton and is among a host of increased fees and levies included in the budget that are expected to generate $360 million for the province this year.
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The $9.4 billion deficit for the 2026 fiscal year is forecast to be followed by deficits of $7.6 billion and $6.9 billion in the two following years.
Horner’s speech to the Calgary Chamber of Commerce is scheduled to take place at 12:30 p.m. on Friday and Global News will be there to cover it.
— With files from The Canadian Press
$9.4B?? I ate that in donuts alone last year.
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