Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is reiterating his call for the federal government to end all taxes on diesel and cut wasteful spending as Prime Minister Mark Carney prepares to unveil his budget Thursday.
“Conservatives are demanding that he (Carney) cut wasteful spending to bring down deficits, inflation and taxes so Canadians can afford a good life,” Poilievre said during a news conference Sunday.
He went on to cite data from the Parliamentary Budget Officer, who projected $733 billion in additional debt in the next five years. That includes a $63.3-billion deficit in the 2026-27 fiscal year, down from a forecast $71.8 billion in the PBO’s June outlook.
In a letter, Poilievre urged Carney to reduce the cost of government. He wrote this should include cutting bureaucracy, wasteful foreign aid, and cancelling the ALTO high-speed rail project between Toronto and Quebec City.
The leader of the official opposition also called on Carney to “keep your promised debt anchors,” urging the prime minister to reduce the deficit until the budget is balanced.
Get breaking National news
The PBO has predicted the government will not meet its fiscal anchor of maintaining a declining deficit-to-GDP ratio; instead, the office expects the measure to rise in 2027-28 and 2029-30.
“This budget should be judged against his promise to Canadians,” Poilievre said.
Poilievre also called for the elimination of federal taxes on diesel until Canada Day and for Ottawa to suspend the GST on fuel until summer and scrap what he called the Fuel Standard Tax.
Earlier this week, the federal government unveiled its title and theme for the upcoming budget, which Finance Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne’s office said reflects a period of “profound change and uncertainty.”
Titled “MASTERS OF OUR DESTINY: BUDGET 2026,” Champagne’s office said the title was inspired by the 1962 Quebec electoral campaign of then-premier Jean Lesage.
The note from Champagne’s office said the slogan at the time was “a defining expression during a moment of profound change and uncertainty,” as the Lesage government was planning to build up hydroelectric resources and institutions that would support the economy.
Ottawa’s latest budget comes as Carney’s government continues to rework Canada’s economy and trade relationships to reduce reliance on the U.S., amid ongoing tariffs and trade tensions.
As Poilievre outlined his demands Sunday, Carney released a statement saying he had a “good conversation” with President Donald Trump and the teams from both countries were going to work in the coming weeks towards a “mutually beneficial” trade deal.
—with files from Global News’ Ariel Rabinovitch and The Canadian Press
I don’t feel sorry for you Ben, you are far beyond being helped, so young and naive
@Ben. I don’t like either leader, nut will be holding Carney accountable for his promises and lack of results so far. Joining the EU is not going to make Canada stronger. People can be against Canrey and still not be a “conservative” you seem to want to label them as.
Canadians have clearly moved on from the Trudeau years, but some Conservatives seem determined to keep living in the past. Rather than looking forward and addressing the challenges Canada faces today, they continue to rehash yesterday’s politics. Ironically they do this with a yesterday leader, Poilievre.
Poilievre remains stuck at 21% approval because Canadians simply don’t trust him. The Conservatives are treading water at around 30% because Canadians aren’t convinced by their leadership either.
Canadians are tired of hearing Poilievre and the Conservatives insist that Canada is broken. At a time when our country is facing serious economic and political pressure from the United States, Canadians need leadership that stands up for Canada, offers solutions and brings people together, which Carney is doing. Canadians do not want endless negativity, division and complaints about the past.
If you sick of cunada, come to Russia, I give you complementary copy of DVD where I wrestle polar Bear, and then I push the RED button
Carneys failures are starting to add up, give it time. More job losses expected in Oct. Opposition must keep the Govt to account. That is their job.
It is clear you have a strong bias. Poilievre isn’t in a position of power to make cuts to anything.
End of case.
Your own posts are often disinformation and misinformation. That is unfortunate.
@Ben you consistently bash PP and the Conservatives while weakly defending Carney Trudeau and the Liberals as a whole, while the last decade has pushed our once great country down the proverbial toilet. The Liberals have done absolutely nothing but wreck this country for the last decade, yet you and too many others keep supporting them. Yes we can blame the dumpster fire President of the DSA (Divided States of America) for some of this, but he’s only been part of the problem for the last couple of years. You want proof? How about the fact that your current savior Carney had come out and said the Trudeau policies on immigration and green energy were mistakes. That’s one Liberal throwing another under the bus.
Just like the recent provincial election in BC, maybe it’s time for a change. Can’t say the Conservatives will fail when you don’t give them a chance. Couldn’t we worse than the last decade.
@529, it’s not just boomers, there’s a whole group of the voting population between 18 till death that are BLIND AND DUMB, and have kept useless people in power
@Anonymous 529 pm. I’m Gen Z and I’ll continue to vote for Carney until a better choice comes along.
Canada is a sh it hole now because of liberals and the f *ucking morons who kept them in power. Shoot yourselves boomers.
@Jessica Emily. Funny how your ad can remind us of something Poilievre once said. He actually suggested at one point that Canadians should turn to cryptocurrency as a hedge against inflation.
The more I hear from him, the more he sounds like Musk and Trump.
The fact of the matter is that some conservatives can insist all they want that Poilievre won’t cut health transfers, military spending, or infrastructure investments to reduce Canada’s dependence on trade with the United States. But promises mean very little without a track record to back them up.
Poilievre has given Canadians reason to question his judgment and credibility. One particularly egregious example was his decision to side with Trump over fentanyl related tariffs against Canada, even as he repeatedly called for someone to “fix our broken border.”
He has contributed to a political climate filled with misinformation and misleading narratives. I’m not interested in what Poilievre says he will or won’t do. I’m interested in what he has actually done. Actions speak louder than promises.
Sorry to interrupt your conversation, but I just want to share something that might help someone here. I was scammed involving cryptocurrency, and at the time, I didn’t know what to do. I was very confused until I came across the support company “Recovery”; thanks to them, I managed to recover all my money, and the scammers were arrested. If you find yourself in a similar situation, you can reach out to them via their email: supportrecovery616@ gmail com
In the world of modern liberals, elected officials and citizenry only count if they represent a party over citizenry, and other I-don’t-know-what-words-mean-shenanigans.
I’m in 70s, in my entire life I’ve never seen as much homelessness, kids with glass pipes in their mouth, seniors living in cars, this is not new normal, and to those who say the government is doing all it can, you are obviously too dumb or blind to see what the majority of us see as plain as day
Come deliver my weapons, armour and ammunition.
There is no world where Liberals live.
Dallas Winston purports that mental retardation is why he supports Liberals no matter how often they fail.
He also holds himself out Jesus Chris and asserts that he wouldn’t fill a thing that didn’t exist in his time with a thing that didn’t exist in his time.
In short, he’s worthy of the thought: bodies burned generate more energy than dry wood.
Some of the comments here are pure lunacy
There a term for Carney…
This is exactly what keeps the Conservatives from getting elected (spending cuts). Spending without any return (Liberals) is tantamount to throwing your money away; but to cut all spending (Conservatives) just drives the country into impoverishment. You have to spend the correct amount of money in the appropriate places that brings dividends to your investment. Giving millions of dollars to Ukraine to fight a hopeless war that they can’t possibly win is tantamount to building a bon fire and feeding that fire with money. If I had one conversation with Vladimir Putin, I could end the war in Ukraine. It would cost Ukraine some of it’s land but it would secure repriations to the country of Ukraine, secure their place in the EU and afford them NATO security. Plus it would bolster trade between Russia and Europe. As much as the world sees Trump as a fool, he’s not so much a fool as he is misdirected. Trump’s biggest obstacle is greed, followed very closely by ignorance. What Trump knows about Christ wouldn’t fill a bottle cap with crude oil
Ben, DUMB as fug, NEVER gonna change, it’s in his family tree
You Libby DUMDUMS must spray perfume on carnholes azz before you start eating
PP is a fugging dumdum, if you’re not like Trump, Putin and Adolph all rolled into one you’re GARBAGE
Based on what the Finance Minister has said its going to contain more spending not less
..lil trump wannabee PP still looking for relevance and credibility. He is about due for a dog whistle to the maga/zealots that run his party…stay tuned.
Ben, everything you said was a lie. Poillievre never said anything about cutting funding for health care military, or infrastructure. Quite the opposite, and he stated cuts should be made to a top-heavy government and wasteful programs. Increasing taxes only to give it away for foreign interests is not the answer. Now, spin another strawman and talk your way out of this, Ben.
Carney is perfect and has put country before party.
While I have to purchase the lowest priced groceries I can find to put food on the table for family it makes me proud to have a prime minister that is putting Canadians before party as that is what a great leader does. Now that the interest rates are rising I will have to find even lower priced food and goods while inflation continues to rise. Raising the national debt by putting Canadians before party is the best policy I have ever seen and there is no need to lower spending as our employer will continue to pay us more due to inflation.
Canadians have not had it better since we have a government that is putting us before party!
I will and always for vote for sunny ways and the Liberal dictatorship as that is the best and only policy to live by in Canada.
Thank Prime Minister Carney. I bow to your teachings as they lead us to a great life in a free country.
As stated in the article…
“Poilievre urged Carney to reduce the cost of government. He wrote this should include cutting bureaucracy, wasteful foreign aid, and cancelling the ALTO high-speed rail project between Toronto and Quebec City.”
He has NOT mentioned cuts to health transfers, The military, Or Infrastructure.
Stop lying / making things up.
Conservatives are not your enemies.
Poilievre knows that we are in a trade war with the USA, and all he talks about are typical conservative proposals. Cut taxes, and reduce the deficit by spending on… what? Does Poilievre want to cut health transfers? The military? Infrastructure being built to diversify our non US trade?
It’s the typical conservative answer to everything. Cut taxes. Reduce spending. Their proposals lack detail and creativity.
Poilievre should stop playing political games and join Carney in fighting the US. The conservative party should put country before party like Carney has.
A brick of Canadian butter was $9.49 at the store today.
A brick of butter is not worth that price.
Queue economically devoid Liberals praising policies they don’t understand.