Canada’s finance minister says Ottawa is working to rein in spending and restore fiscal discipline, even as federal deficits continue to climb far beyond earlier government targets.Blacklock's Reporter says François‑Philippe Champagne told the Senate Standing Committee on National Finance that the federal government is attempting to “put the house in order” after years of rising borrowing.“We have been very clear that we needed to put the house in order and I think Canadians expect that,” Champagne said. “Canadians have been tightening their belt for quite some time. They expect the federal government to do the same.”The finance minister repeated a pledge first made in 2025 to cut $60 billion in federal spending within three years, though no confirmed savings have yet been announced.“The exercise we did to find the $60 billion in savings is very serious,” Champagne told senators. “We’ve done that in six months.”He said the government’s cost-cutting effort was both ambitious and necessary.“You could see the scale of what we’re doing is both ambitious but also serious,” Champagne said. “We need to put the house in order.”The federal government’s fiscal outlook has drawn criticism after deficits repeatedly overshot official projections. Champagne said last November that the current deficit had reached about $78.3 billion, the largest shortfall outside of pandemic spending and roughly triple the government’s earlier target of $26.8 billion.During the hearing, Elizabeth Marshall, a senator from Newfoundland and Labrador and former provincial auditor general, questioned the government’s plan to increase Canada’s borrowing limit..Marshall noted the Department of Finance Canada has proposed raising the federal debt ceiling to about $2.54 trillion.“It was already increased by $300 billion just 18 months ago and now you’re asking for approval to increase that limit by another $400 billion,” Marshall said. “Your spending is accelerating. Your debt servicing costs are increasing. Your debt’s exploding.”Marshall pressed the minister on how Ottawa intends to control spending.“My question is, how are you going to bring your spending under control?” she asked.Champagne defended the government’s fiscal record, saying Canada’s finances continue to receive international praise.“I may have a slightly different view than you, Senator, on that,” he replied. “Even former Parliamentary Budget Officers have praised the sustainability of the finances of Canada.”Marshall responded that she was relying on the government’s own financial projections.“I am using your numbers, Minister,” she said. “Your financial projections are not credible.”.Champagne insisted the government is taking steps to manage spending.“The world is praising Canada for its governance, for its fiscal sustainability, for its ability to do things,” he said. “We are a nation that does big things.”However, the most recent parliamentary budget watchdog has raised serious concerns about Ottawa’s deficit spending.Former Parliamentary Budget Officer Jason Jacques told the House of Commons Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates last September that the federal government’s fiscal trajectory was deeply troubling.“It should be very alarming,” Jacques said at the time. “We don’t lightly use the word ‘unsustainable.’ Unsustainable means if you don’t change, this is done.”
