Remarks by the Deputy Prime Minister on fiscal responsibility

October 24, 2023 - Ottawa, Ontario

Let me just start by saying that the thoughts of all of us are with the loved ones of those killed and with the people of Sault Ste. Marie in the face of this horrific tragedy.

I will first speak to our government’s broad fiscal approach as we head towards our Fall Economic Statement.

I will then turn it over to Minister Anand, who will speak to the Public Accounts for 2022-23—which is a proof point of our economic plan—and then to Minister Champagne, who will speak about some important funding we are providing for consumer advocacy.

Our Fall Economic Statement will be narrowly focused on a few key challenges. It will be focused on building more homes, faster and making more homes available for Canadians to live in; on continuing our work to make life more affordable for Canadians; and on continuing to deliver our fiscally responsible economic plan.

As a result of our economic plan, since the depths of the pandemic, Canada has had the fastest rate of fiscal consolidation in the G7. This means we have brought down our deficits faster than any of our G7 peers.

Two weeks ago, data published by the IMF in its World Economic Outlook also reaffirmed that our government’s economic plan has Canada on a responsible fiscal track, showing that Canada ranks as the country with the lowest net debt-to-GDP ratio in the G7 by a significant margin—and with the fastest projected economic growth in 2024, as well.

As detailed in the Annual Financial Report released today by the Department of Finance, Canada’s debt-to-GDP ratio was 42.2 per cent in 2022-23, that is down from 45.4 per cent in the previous year—and from a pandemic peak of 47.5 per cent in 2019-20.

Today, Canada maintains both the lowest deficit and net debt-to-GDP ratio of all G7 countries.

This commitment to fiscal responsibility is a pillar of Canada’s AAA credit rating—and it is a foundation of our exceptionally strong economic recovery from the COVID recession, which has led to over a million more Canadians working today compared to when COVID first hit.

I am very much looking forward to providing an update on our economic plan in our Fall Economic Statement.