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1. Government debt—a snapshot of each province

   The 2018 edition of the Federal Fiscal Tables is out, so it’s a good time to review the state of provincial government debt in Canada, especially given that we are about 10 years out from the financial crisis and Great Recession. Even ...

2. Provincial finances in trouble—spotlight Atlantic Canada

   The Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) recently published its annual fiscal sustainability report, which provides long-term projections to assess the sustainability of public finances for the federal government and the provinces. In this ...

3. Ontario has a $15 billion deficit—not the $6.7 billion claimed by the previous government

   The Ontario government’s review of provincial finances is finally out, and the picture is even grimmer than what the auditor general and the Financial Accountability Office have presented. The key findings confirm that Ontario since 1990 ...

4. Alberta auditor general spotlights the resource rollercoaster

   Alberta’s auditor general recently produced a report that highlighted risks to Alberta’s long-term fiscal sustainability. The report highlights a number of problems with Alberta’s approach to fiscal policy in recent years, including the ...

5. Ontario’s net debt may hit $500 billion by 2026-27

   The size of Ontario’s provincial deficit has become a matter of some debate. The Wynne government’s 2018 budget projected a deficit of $6.7 billion. But according to a recent report from the auditor general, Ontario’s deficit may be even ...

6. Four reasons why Alberta’s vague balance budget plan may fall short

   Last month, when Finance Minister Joe Ceci unveiled Alberta’s 2018 budget, despite weeks stoking expectations of a detailed plan to eliminate the province’s budget deficit, he instead delivered a risky plan almost entirely reliant on ...

7. Actually, including capital spending, Ontario’s deficit is more than $32 billion

   Ontario’s 2018 provincial budget saw total operating expense reach $158.5 billion with total revenues at $152.5 billion, for a deficit of just over $6 billion. But there has been some debate over government accounting methods and the ...

8. Quebec expects operating surplus of $904 million compared to Alberta’s $8.8 billion deficit

   In spring, the thoughts of provincial governments turn to budgets, and all the provinces have now unveiled their 2018 budgets starting with New Brunswick in January and most recently Saskatchewan last week. TD Economics maintains a very ...

9. Surprise—Alberta’s government debt burden is approaching Quebec’s

   The recent provincial budgets released by the Quebec and Alberta governments are a study in contrasts of government debt. On one hand, Quebec has a high-debt government that’s aiming to reduce its debt burden. On the other hand, Alberta ...

10. Alberta’s 2018 budget—a breathtaking exercise in complacency

    Yesterday, the Alberta government released its budget for the 2018/19 fiscal year. The document is essentially a status quo budget, which promises continued nominal spending growth over the rest of its fiscal plan (though more moderate ...