Canada’s budget watchdog is pressing Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne for updated figures on the true cost of Ottawa’s electric vehicle battery subsidies, warning taxpayers are being kept in the dark as the industry falters.Budget Officer Yves Giroux wrote to the Department of Finance on August 14 asking for revised forecasts on both construction support and ongoing production subsidies. Blacklock's Reporter says his office previously pegged the total bill at up to $50 billion, far higher than the government has admitted.Cabinet has already pledged $16.3 billion to Volkswagen for a plant in St. Thomas, Ont., $15 billion to Stellantis for facilities in Windsor and Brampton, $322 million to Ford for a parts plant in Quebec, and $1.3 billion to Northvolt in Sainte-Basile-le-Grande. .But Northvolt’s Swedish parent company filed for bankruptcy in March, citing weak EV demand.A Department of Finance briefing note last fall quietly admitted the government’s electric auto strategy “may be adjusted” due to delays and shortfalls, but Champagne still insists the subsidies are a “game changer for the nation.” He has claimed Canadians would see a five-year payback on the billions spent, calling it a “pretty good deal.”.Giroux flatly rejected those claims, accusing the Liberals of peddling “wildly optimistic” projections. “We think our approach is reasonable, much more so than the government’s,” he testified, adding that his only interest is protecting taxpayers.The Budget Office warned the payback timeline touted by Champagne is unrealistic, especially given market troubles and the collapse of a company Ottawa had already backed with more than a billion dollars. Giroux said transparency is critical: “I work for parliamentarians. I work for the benefit of taxpayers and Canadians. I don’t have a vested interest.”
