If one could cure an alcohol addiction by drinking more whisky, perhaps one might also find a way to believe in Finance Minister Freeland's chirrupy optimism as she presented her Fall Economic Update."Our economic plan is working!" she said.No it's not. Not unless the Trudeau Liberals planned all along to create crippling inflation, a shortage of affordable housing, massive government debt, rising interest rates, seriously reduced productivity, declining economic growth and rising government debt payments.If that was the plan, well yes. It's worked. But tempting though it is to attribute malice or sinister motives to the Trudeau Liberals, the more likely explanation is that they're thick. Which is British for stupid as a brick. I don't actually think they intended any of it. So contra Ms. Freeland, there was no plan, other than to generate a string of spending announcements to make the feckless prime minister look good before two elections.And there's the main problem: The Liberals are led by a man who once thought budgets balanced themselves — I guess he knows now — and who once declared to an uncurious mainstream press that he "didn't think much about monetary policy." No, it doesn't look as if he ever did, or does now. But because he doesn't have the brains God gave a goose, the loyal but luckless and only slightly smarter finance minister finds herself pushed out to put lipstick on the pig and pretend that it's all just fine — all part of the plan, you see — that unemployment is expected to rise next year to 6.4% while growth will tumble from this year's uninspiring 1.1%, to a feeble 0.4% in 2024. This, despite a continuing surge in immigration driving the construction industry. (Not that there would be a recession, mind.)Meanwhile, although overspending of borderline criminality has caused double-digit food inflation, that was fought with interest rate hikes that are now threatening people's homes as their post-renewal payments double... with alll that, Freeland now proudly announces a further $20.8 billion to be tacked on to the deficit. What's that supposed to be? Hair of the dog?For the record, if you're one of the unlucky ones whose 2.95% mortgage has rolled over and you're now being asked for 5.5%, keep in mind that if the Bank of Nova Scotia is correct, the deficits run up by the Trudeau Liberals have added 2% to interest rates, (the raising of rates being the Bank of Canada's preferred way of reining in the inflation that's also attributable to the Trudeau Liberals's out-of-control spending.) You might be about to lose our home. But Chrystia Freeland says the government's economic plan is working. How well is it going? The total interest payable by the taxpayer rises from $52 billion this year to $60 billion in 2028. Given that the whole Department of National Defence costs less than half that in a year, some sense of the enormity of the consequences of the government's economic illiteracy is apparent.But Freeland does her best to make it all sound like a good thing. This government after all, never spends money. It only 'invests' it and of course, it is 'investing' in all us struggling Canadians who even the prime minister admitted, were 'having a hard time.' The Trudeau Liberals deserve to be slagged for what they've done to this country. (Maybe that's why the Liberals also made a point of 'investing' another $129 million in the mainstream media bailout fund, before the slagging begins. Keep things sweet. NB: Although the Western Standard qualifies to receive this funding, we decline to accept it.)Former interim Conservative Party leader Rona Ambrose had it right: “Everyone was looking for a return to a balanced budget, some type of strong fiscal anchor,” she told BNN Bloomberg. “We don’t see that.”And, with an election coming in 2025 — or perhaps before — and everything to lose, nothing stops an increasingly desperate government with nothing left to lose, from pushing spending higher yet, does it?Because of uncontrolled spending, inflation and consequent rising interest rates, far too many Canadians can no longer afford food, power or a place to live.No Ms. Freeland, your economic plan is not working.In fact, to be honest it doesn't look like the Liberals ever actually had one, does it?
