Federal Government: 1)Prime Minister Mark Carney promises ‘good news’ in spring economic update; 2)Prime Minister Mark Carney announces Canada’s 1st sovereign wealth fund; 3)Poll suggests Canadians want Carney government focused on affordability in next year; 4)(Updated) Carney says Canada not ‘taking notes’ from Americans as it prepares for trade talks; 5)Carney names members of new advisory committee on Canada-U.S. economic relations
1)Prime Minister Mark Carney promises ‘good news’ in spring economic update
Courtesy Barrie360.com and Canadian Press
By Craig Lord, April 28, 2026
Prime Minister Mark Carney says the Liberals are “good fiscal managers” — and he’ll have the chance to prove it when the federal government tables its spring economic update Tuesday afternoon.
The federal government typically tables mid-year updates between annual budgets to revise its economic and fiscal projections. These updates can include new spending and are sometimes referred to as “mini-budgets.”
The Liberals’ fall budget — the first under Carney’s leadership — projected a deficit of $78.3 billion for the last fiscal year, with deficits declining and averaging around $64 billion annually over the five-year horizon.
The federal fiscal monitor for April 2025 to February 2026 shows the deficit came in at $25.5 billion over the first 11 months of the last fiscal year.
March typically sees a large one-month jump in the deficit, though some analysts still expect the federal government will post a lower deficit than projected in Budget 2025.
Speaking to reporters on Monday, Carney suggested there would be “good news” on the federal government’s fiscal position in the spring update.
A reporter asked the prime minister why the deficit would come in lower than projected. “Because we’re good fiscal managers,” Carney replied.
“We focus on the numbers. And we were determined to get spending down with a lot of very … difficult decisions. You can’t do everything at the same time,” he added.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has called on the Liberals to slash spending and get the deficit on track to balance. He calls the Liberals’ approach to spending “credit card budgeting” and argues it will cost Canadians through higher inflation and interest payments down the road.
Poilievre did not suggest a timeline for balancing the budget when asked by reporters Monday.
“Let’s figure out how badly Mark Carney messes up the books before we announce how long it will take for Conservatives to clean it up,” he said.
The prime minister has justified deeper deficits by citing the need to build major projects, ramp up defence spending and transition Canada’s economy away from reliance on the United States.
On Monday, he announced the creation of a sovereign wealth fund with an initial $25-billion capitalization to invest alongside the private sector in nation-building projects.
Since the fall budget, the federal government has also unveiled new affordability measures — including a boost to the GST benefit for lower-income households and a pause on the federal fuel excise tax until Labour Day — that will add new expenses to the fiscal outlook.
In a video statement released on Sunday, Finance Minister François-Phillippe Champagne touted those efforts, saying “bringing down everyday costs is at the heart” of the fiscal plan.
Many economists expect the federal government will receive additional revenues from the oil price shock tied to the war in Iran, though uncertainty over how long the Middle East conflict will last is sure to cloud Ottawa’s forecasts.
Champagne acknowledged in his statement that “volatility is omnipresent” and said the government’s plan is aimed at protecting economic sovereignty.
Carney pushed back Monday when a reporter suggested the government’s revenues would be better because of higher inflation. He noted the annual rate of inflation has been within the Bank of Canada’s target range of one to three per cent for the entirety of his time in office.
Statistics Canada has also revised up past gross domestic product data since the fall, giving the federal government a better starting point for many of its fiscal guideposts.
The Liberals had a minority mandate when they tabled their first budget in November and legislation enacting the spending plan only came into force in March, with a handful of amendments from opposition members of Parliament.
After a Liberal sweep of three April byelections, the party’s new MPs were officially sworn into their seats Monday — meaning Carney now has a formal majority government and more power to get bills passed.
2)Prime Minister Mark Carney announces Canada’s 1st sovereign wealth fund
Courtesy Barrie360.com and Canadian Press
By Craig Lord, April 27, 2026
Prime Minister Mark Carney announced the country’s first national sovereign wealth fund on Monday, pitching it as a way for Canadians to invest in nation-building projects.
Carney said the Canada Strong Fund will invest in major Canadian industrial projects in areas such as energy, infrastructure, mining, agriculture and technology.
The prime minister said the federal government will put up funds starting at $25 billion to invest alongside private investors. He said individual Canadians can also put money into the fund and suggested it would be similar to purchasing a government bond, where the initial investment is protected.
Returns from those investments will be put back into the fund to expand its capacity and build out capital projects in Canada.
Speaking to reporters Monday, Carney compared the fund to a “national savings and investment account.” He also called it “the people’s fund.”
Carney cited the Canadian Pacific Railway as an example of a privately funded project supported with public money that ultimately delivered benefits for generations of Canadians.
He said the fund can support construction of new ports, mines and energy corridors that will have similar national benefits.
“We’re taking lessons from our history, which is that a lot of wealth has been created in these transformative projects,” Carney said.
“It creates an opportunity to invest alongside for Canadians and spread that wealth over time.”
Countries such as Norway and many Gulf states already have large sovereign wealth funds. Alberta’s Heritage Savings Trust Fund functions in a similar way, by reinvesting proceeds from the province’s resource sector.
The Canada Strong Fund will be set up as an independent, arm’s-length Crown corporation. The federal government says it will consult over the coming months on the specific design of the investment instrument.
Carney made the announcement Monday morning at the Canada Science and Technology Museum in Ottawa, a day before the Liberal government tables the spring economic update.
The prime minister was asked where the federal government will get the money to cover the initial $25-billion capitalization. He said he didn’t want to “front-run” his finance minister’s fiscal update.
Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne, in Montreal to discuss the Canada Strong Fund on Monday, was also asked where the money would be coming from.
Champagne did not answer directly but said the federal government’s relatively strong fiscal standing internationally would allow it to borrow at favourable rates.
In Ottawa, Carney suggested there would be “good news” in Tuesday’s update on the government’s deficits and spending reduction targets.
He was asked by a reporter why the deficit would be lower than projected in the 2025 federal budget back in November.
“Because we’re good fiscal managers,” he said.
The Liberals’ fall budget projected a deficit of $78.3 billion for the last fiscal year, with deficits declining and averaging around $64 billion annually over the five-year horizon.
Carney also pushed back when a reporter suggested the government’s revenues would be better because of higher inflation. He noted the annual rate of inflation has been within the Bank of Canada’s target range of one to three per cent for the entirety of his time in office.
Many economists predict the federal government’s revenue stream will benefit from the recent spike in gas prices tied to the war in Iran. Ottawa has offset some of the higher revenues from the energy shock with affordability measures, such as a pause on the federal fuel excise tax until Labour Day.
Since the fall budget, Statistics Canada has also revised up gross domestic product data from the previous three years, giving the federal government a stronger-than-expected starting point for many of its fiscal guideposts.
— with files from Kyle Duggan and Sarah Ritchie
3)Poll suggests Canadians want Carney government focused on affordability in next year
Courtesy Barrie360.com and Canadian Press
A new poll from the Angus Reid Institute suggests Canadians are giving Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government a passing grade in its first year of international relations, but it has failed to meet expectations on affordability issues.
The poll asked 2,013 Canadians a series of questions about the government’s performance since it won the election on April 28, 2025.
Last spring’s election campaign was dominated by the trade war with the U.S. and centred on who was best positioned to handle the relationship with the mercurial President Donald Trump and the economic turbulence of his tariffs.
Carney has continued to lead in national polls all year as the leader Canadians consider to be most capable of managing that relationship heading into the July review of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement on trade.
A year later, just 31 per cent of those polled said they think the Canada-U.S. relationship will be the top concern for the government in the next year. The No. 1 priority for 52 per cent of respondents was reducing the cost of living.
Seventy per cent of those polled said they feel the government has fallen short of expectations when it comes to addressing the high cost of living and 67 per cent felt the Liberals missed the mark on improving housing affordability.
The Liberals pledged to create the “most ambitious housing plan since the Second World War” in the last election, which they said would double the rate of residential construction over the next decade.
The annual rate of housing starts decreased six per cent last month, according to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp.
A majority — 59 per cent — of those polled felt the Liberals met or exceeded expectations on defence spending and meeting its NATO commitments. Canada has finally met the NATO alliance pledge to spend the equivalent of two per cent of GDP on defence this year.
The picture was brighter, however, when it comes to the government’s performance internationally.
A majority of people who took part in the poll — 56 per cent — said they felt Carney was meeting or beating expectations at managing the relationship with Trump.
Sixty-four per cent said the Liberals met or exceeded expectations in improving Canada’s international reputation, and 57 per cent said expectations were met or exceeded when it comes to diversifying trade.
That’s been a major focus for the prime minister since he took office. The Liberals have set out to double non-U. S. exports over the next decade and have boasted about signing 20 strategic trade and defence agreements around the world in the last year.
Carney has travelled to 25 countries during 17 international trips that date back to March 2025.
Those high-profile trips have included stops in China and India, countries with whom Canada has had strained relations in recent years.
Carney’s travel has also drawn criticism from the opposition.
The poll respondents had mixed reviews for whether the government is meeting its election promises: 41 per cent said it had, while another 41 per cent said it had not.
Among Liberal voters, just 12 per cent said Carney has exceeded expectations in the first year.
And 42 per cent said they feel the country is on the wrong track, compared to 34 per cent who said it’s on the right track.
Conservative voters felt most strongly that the country is headed in the wrong direction, at 75 per cent, and that the government is falling short of expectations on addressing cost-of-living challenges, at 86 per cent.
Carney’s own ratings continue to be high, with 58 per cent of respondents saying they approve of his performance as prime minister.
Angus Reid notes that number is higher than past prime ministers Stephen Harper, Paul Martin and Brian Mulroney at the one-year mark, and lower than Jean Chrétien and Justin Trudeau.
The poll was conducted between April 15 and 20.
4)(Updated) Carney says Canada not ‘taking notes’ from Americans as it prepares for trade talks
Courtesy Barrie360.com and Canadian Press
By Kyle Duggan, April 23, 2026
Canada is not just sitting back “taking notes” or “instructions” from the Americans on how to go about trade talks after White House officials complained publicly about trade irritants, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Thursday.
The prime minister said the United States has raised most of the issues on bilateral trade but he’s focused on eliminating the American tariffs gripping key sectors of the Canadian economy.
“You know what’s an irritant? Fifty per cent tariff on steel, 50 per cent tariff on aluminum, 25 per cent tariff on automobiles, all the tariffs on forest products,” Carney said during an exchange with reporters in Ottawa on Thursday.
“Those are more than irritants. Those are violations of our trade deal.”
Carney also said he had never heard of any sort of “entry fee” required for Canada to enter negotiations with the White House to renew the continental free trade pact.
A Radio-Canada report on Wednesday said the Americans are demanding concessions from Canada as a precondition for starting negotiations on the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement on trade, better known as CUSMA.
United States Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told a congressional committee Wednesday the White House is pressing for “changes” to Canadian trade practices.
Greer warned of possible trade “enforcement action” against Canada if American alcohol does not return to liquor store shelves here.
Carney noted it’s up to the provinces to decide whether to return American alcohol to store shelves, and that they only removed the products in the first place in response to President Donald Trump’s blistering tariffs. Alberta and Saskatchewan have since restarted U.S. liquor imports, while other provinces have not.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford promptly dug in his heels on Wednesday, saying American alcohol will “only go back on shelves when the U.S. removes its tariffs.”
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre downplayed the question of what to do with liquor stores not stocking American booze, arguing the bigger picture on bilateral trade matters more.
“I don’t think we need to spend three or four days debating whether we should drink bourbon or not. I think we should discuss whether 2.6 million Canadians are going to have their jobs,” Poilievre told reporters in Ottawa on Thursday.
“The way to get those jobs secured is to get a tariff-free trade deal with the U.S.”
The Conservative leader said Carney should not “squander any more leverage” after making “a series of upfront concessions” to the White House.
Janice Charette, Canada’s chief trade negotiator, said on Tuesday Canada has already made some significant concessions by dropping the digital services tax, issuing millions in refunds to tech companies and ending retaliatory tariffs.
She said her mandate is to protect the “fundamentals” in the existing trade pact and seek relief from U.S. tariffs, but warned it’s not clear Canada will return to “the beautiful tariff-free existence we had.”
Carney indicated Canada may be prepared to wait out the Americans as his government works to shore up the domestic economy and diversify its trading partners.
“We’re ready to go into detailed negotiations. We’re also ready to wait, if that’s what has to happen,” Carney said.
Canada’s former top trade negotiator Steve Verheul said earlier this month Canada is in a “good position” heading into talks to renew CUSMA and that “time is on our side” because pressures on the U.S. will only “increase over time.”
“It’s really a question of Canada being prepared to wait this out a bit,” Verheul said on April 8.
U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick recently dismissed that idea as “the worst strategy I’ve ever heard.”
Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet said playing out the clock — hoping that Trump’s position will be diminished if the Republicans get clobbered in the November midterm elections — is not the best way to start negotiations.
“It might be a naive way to see the way Mr. Trump thinks or acts. Let’s use this opportunity to start a real negotiation,” Blanchet told reporters on Parliament Hill Thursday.
Blanchet said Canada should “not wait for something not to happen, in the hope that it will be better for us.”
— With files from Sarah Ritchie and David Baxter
5)Carney names members of new advisory committee on Canada-U.S. economic relations
Courtesy Barrie360.com and Canadian Press
By David Baxter, April 21, 2026.
Prime Minister Mark Carney retooled an advisory committee on Canada-U.S. trade on Tuesday, adding a former Conservative leader and the former high commissioner to the United Kingdom to the team.
The committee revives the Council on Canada-U.S. Relations that was established by former prime minister Justin Trudeau in January 2025, renaming it the Advisory Committee on Canada-U.S. Economic Relations and adding several high-profile names.
Those include former Conservative leader Erin O’Toole, Ralph Goodale, a former Liberal cabinet minister and high commissioner to the U.K., former Conservative cabinet minister Lisa Raitt and former Nunavut premier P.J. Akeeagok.
Among the names retained from the original Trudeau committee are former Quebec premier Jean Charest, Automotive Parts Manufacturers’ Association president Flavio Volpe and Unifor president Lana Payne.
“It’s a diverse group: leaders in the union movement, experts in industry, CEOs in finance and across the economy,” Carney said in a brief statement as he arrived on Parliament Hill Tuesday.
Dominic LeBlanc, the minister responsible for Canada-U.S. trade, will chair the new committee.
“It’s very much focused on businesses that have important relations with American customers, American business partners. I’m looking forward to the first meeting next week,” LeBlanc said on his way into the cabinet meeting Tuesday.
“I have spoken to a number of these people of the last number of days. This will be a forum for the government of Canada to hear directly from business leaders, elected union leaders and community leaders.”
Carney said the council will advise him, LeBlanc and the rest of the negotiating team as Canada prepares for the review of the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement on trade this June.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre told reporters Tuesday that Canada should head into talks with the U.S. by pushing the creation of a strategic mineral and oil reserve with the condition the U.S. maintains tariff-free market access.
“That is the leverage we have, and frankly, something that Prime Minister Carney should have been doing a year ago is making that point,” Poilievre said.
“But in fact, he has squandered our leverage. All the leverage he had going in, he squandered by backing down on everything while getting nothing in return.”
Poilievre criticized Carney for not yet approving a new oil pipeline, for failing to remove government policies he said stifle energy investment, and for slow mining project approvals.
Carney’s revamped committee has more top-level business executives than the previous version.
The new group includes presidents and CEOs of major Canadian energy, resource, forestry and transportation companies. They include the heads of CN Rail, the Bank of Montreal, Nutrien, TC Energy, Canfor and Teck Resources, among others.
The list covers major Canadian industries exposed to U.S. tariffs.
Candace Laing, CEO of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, and Tabitha Bull, CEO of the Canadian Council for Indigenous Business, have been appointed to the committee as representatives of broader business groups.
Cameron Bailey, CEO of the Toronto International Film Festival, has been added as a representative of Canada’s cultural sector.
Some names from Trudeau’s committee that have been dropped include former Alberta premier Rachel Notley and “Dragon’s Den” fixtures Arlene Dickinson and Wes Hall.