Finance Minister Bill Morneau to present federal budget week of March 21: sources

OTTAWA — Canada’s new Liberal government is placed to unveil its first budget in the week of March 21, two sources with knowledge of the procedure said on Tuesday.

The budget, that the Liberals have pledged will include major new spending targeted at boosting a flagging economy, is probably to become presented to Parliament on Monday, March 21 or Tuesday, March 22, said one of the sources, who inspired to remain anonymous given the sensitivity of the matter.

When the Liberals were in power from 1994 to 2005, they delivered 11 budgets, nine of which fell on Monday or Tuesday. The party will likely stick to the same pattern, especially because the Friday of that week is the Good Friday federal holiday, the origin said.

Another person briefed by finance department officials confirmed your budget could be released in the week of March 21.

In response, a spokesman for Finance Minister Bill Morneau said the federal government had not yet announced a budget date.

A Liberal official said recently that the budget might be pushed back to April to provide Morneau more time to judge just how much damage low commodity costs are doing towards the economy and government revenues.

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Since then your Canadian dollar and also the cost of oil have recovered just a little.

Two senior Liberals, who also spoke on condition of anonymity, said the idea of an April budget was now from the table.

“Some of the things we need to do can’t wait until then,” said one.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said a week ago he was committed to fast-tracking infrastructure investments within the oil- and gas-rich province of Alberta, that is struggling with the global slump in energy prices.

The Liberals won power in October around the back of the promise to run three consecutive budget deficits of a maximum of $10 billion annually to help fund purchase of infrastructure.

Since then your economy has deteriorated a lot more than expected, and senior Liberal sources the first deficit is going to be larger than planned.

? Thomson Reuters 2016