The cost of Ottawa’s federal bureaucracy is projected to climb by more than $10 billion this year despite Prime Minister Mark Carney’s pledge to rein in government spending, according to a new report from the Parliamentary Budget Officer.The Canadian Taxpayers Federation says the latest projections show the federal government is moving in the opposite direction of promises made by Carney and Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne to reduce the size and cost of the public service.“Carney has repeatedly told Canadians he’s going to spend less, but the PBO projects the cost of the federal bureaucracy going up again this year,” said Franco Terrazzano, federal director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation. “Carney needs to get serious about cutting the bureaucracy because taxpayers can’t afford to pay billions more for paper pushers in Ottawa.”According to the PBO’s Economic and Fiscal Outlook, the cost of the federal bureaucracy is expected to reach $79.4 billion this year, up from $69.2 billion last year.While bureaucracy costs declined slightly last year, the PBO projects federal staffing expenses will exceed levels seen during former prime minister Justin Trudeau’s final year in office, even after adjusting for inflation.The report also forecasts continued growth in bureaucracy costs, reaching $86 billion annually by 2030.The latest projections follow a decade of rapid growth in Ottawa’s public service. Public Accounts data show the cost of the federal bureaucracy increased by 80% between 2015 and 2024..The spending increases come despite repeated statements from the Liberal government suggesting the size of the federal workforce needs to be reduced.Carney has pledged his government would “spend less,” while Champagne has stated the federal civil service must return to “a more sustainable level.”Terrazzano said the government’s actions have yet to match its rhetoric.“The bureaucracy ballooned over the last decade and the government admits Canadians are paying too much so the cost of the bureaucracy should be going down, not up,” he said. “Carney needs to shrink the federal bureaucracy to stop borrowing money and provide Canadians with the tax relief they need.”The taxpayer group also pointed to public opinion polling suggesting Canadians are dissatisfied with the value they receive from federal services.According to a Leger poll cited by the CTF, half of Canadians believe federal services have deteriorated since 2016 despite the significant growth in the size and cost of the federal bureaucracy.The same polling found most Canadians support reducing the size and cost of Ottawa’s public service.
