Chilliwack-Hope MP Mark Strahl. (Image Credit: Chilliwack-Hope MP Mark Strahl.)
Spring Economic Update

Chilliwack-Hope MP Mark Strahl calls spring economic update from PM Carney a ‘costly credit card budget’

Apr 29, 2026 | 11:00 AM

CHILLIWACK – Chilliwack-Hope MP Mark Strahl says the 2026 Spring Economic Update from the governing Liberals is little more than an exhibition in runaway spending, higher deficits and uncontrolled federal expenditures.

In a statement released Wednesday, Strahl says Prime Minister Mark Carney unveiled a “costly credit card budget” that will double the deficit that former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau left behind.

“This means more costs, more taxes, more debt, and more inflation for Canadians,” said Strahl, who was reelected in 2025 with 53 per cent of the vote. “Carney promised to lower debt-to-GDP ratio, but the reality is that under his watch direct program spending is up 12.4 per cent. Outside of the pandemic, this Liberal Prime Minister is running the biggest deficit in history.”

According to a story from the Canadian Press, the Liberal government released their spring economic update Tuesday closely focused on boosting investment and job training. The thin document served mostly to provide a mid-year update on the government’s finances. Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne boasted about ending the 2025-26 fiscal year with a deficit of $67 billion, compared with the $78 billion predicted by the federal budget last fall.

“I think what matters to Canadians today is that we have managed to lower the deficit, $11 billion, at a time where you would see in the world this kind of a fog of uncertainty which is clouding a lot of parts of the world,” he said. “And Canada, despite all that, has been able to, managed to, lower the deficit, and at the same time making sure we’re there for Canadians.”

While the document warns of significant risks to the Canadian economy stemming from the war in Iran and U.S. tariffs, Champagne said the government is laser focused on economic growth and Canada remains in a strong fiscal position.

However, Strahl paints a different picture about federal finances. He says Canadians are now paying $59 billion in debt interest, up 10 per cent in just one year, and it is now more than the government spends on health care transfers and more than GST revenues.

“Every Canadian family will spend $3,400 in interest on the federal debt as the Carney Liberals show no signs of fiscal responsibility,” he said.

The spring economic update features net new spending of $37 billion, Strahl said, adding that Carney’s new sovereign wealth fund has no wealth.

“But it does now have a transition office to set up an eventual permanent office which will one day borrow from the national credit card to set up a fund,” he quipped. “There is $3 billion more for international climate finance — the same money scheme this Prime Minister used to enrich himself at Brookfield and through his now-bankrupt Net Zero Alliance; $11 million for the same meeting with investors that Trudeau had a decade ago; and $2.3 billion to subsidize foreign electric vehicles.”

At a time when he argues that Canada should be the richest, most affordable country on earth, Strahl says Carney’s own economic update predicts growth will drop and inflation will rise this year.

““Under this Liberal Prime Minister, Canada now has the G7’s highest household debt, most unaffordable housing, lowest investment per worker, second-worst productivity, and second-highest unemployment,” Strahl said. “Conservatives believe affordability at home and strength abroad are key to building a self-reliant Canada and we have the clear plan to get there.”

He says Conservatives favour affordable and abundant energy by getting rid of energy taxes, repealing anti-development laws, and rapidly approving projects to lower the cost of energy.

When it comes to lower inflation and lower taxes, Strahl wants to see a balanced budget, lower spending, and keeping the Canadian money system strong by not “printing money to spend it.”

Conservatives have warned that the Carney Liberals’ deficits drive up costs, weaken our economy, and leave Canadian families paying the bill,” Strahl said. “We will continue to offer a plan that will make Canada self-reliant again, removing Liberal barriers and unleashing Canadian potential so we can build a country that is affordable and secure at home, and unbreakable abroad.”