Liberal MP Nathaniel Erskine-Smith has publicly criticized his own government’s 2025 federal budget, delivering a four-minute video statement that framed his remarks as “the good, the bad, and the ugly.” While political attention has largely focused on reports of division within the Conservative Party, Erskine-Smith’s comments show that discontent also exists within Liberal ranks.In his remarks, the Beaches–East York MP acknowledged that the budget has strong points, including major spending on national sovereignty, a new “Buy Canada” procurement policy, infrastructure investments, and support for the Canadian Forces. .He praised the creation of a sovereign wealth fund for critical minerals, modeled on Norway’s approach, and noted new funding for innovation and research. He also welcomed measures to address youth unemployment, protect the Canada Disability Benefit from taxation, and support personal support workers.But much of Erskine-Smith’s focus was on the shortcomings he sees in the government’s plan. He said expectations for “generational investments” were not met and criticized the budget for offering “nothing new” on climate change, noting cuts to tree-planting programs, the winding down of the Greener Homes initiative, and a lack of funding for climate-related housing efforts.On housing itself, he said new programs like Build Canada Homes and tax breaks for first-time buyers are unlikely to meaningfully increase supply or affordability.Erskine-Smith also took issue with the government’s fiscal approach. He pointed out that the budget adds about $140 billion in new spending over five years, with only a third of that going to long-term capital projects.“My kids shouldn’t pay for today’s military or for me to save $400 in income taxes,” he said, arguing that the government is relying too heavily on deficit financing for short-term spending.He reserved his strongest criticism for what he called the “ugly” parts of the budget, singling out a new fossil-fuel subsidy for LNG facilities and $2.5 billion in cuts to international development aid..Calling the budget “not a Pearsonian budget,” Erskine-Smith said the decision reflects a “short-sighted” approach among wealthy donor nations.While Erskine-Smith acknowledged that this is only the government’s first budget and that difficult trade-offs are unavoidable, he said it fails to deliver on the promise of transformational investments.He joked that it was “a pretty good Progressive Conservative budget,” before adding that some Conservatives might even agree..His critique comes at a time when attention has been fixed on tensions among Conservatives following internal disputes over fiscal and social priorities.Erskine-Smith’s comments show that questions over direction and priorities are not limited to the opposition benches, highlighting the challenge for Prime MinisterMark Carney's government as it tries to project unity and competence in an uncertain political climate.
