In another time, Prime Minister Mark Carney’s talk of steep government spending cuts would be the talk of the town. But these aren’t other times. Read MoreThe Liberal government must be as specific as possible about what is required of a leaner, more purposeful public service.
The Liberal government must be as specific as possible about what is required of a leaner, more purposeful public service.
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In another time, Prime Minister Mark Carney’s talk of steep government spending cuts would be the talk of the town. But these aren’t other times.
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We now live in the age of Trump, and the U.S. President’s ongoing trade war with the world is a story that is able to erase much of most other countries’ domestic news agenda. And so it is with Canada and its need to reduce spending after years of Trudeau-era bloat.
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Make no mistake; Carney’s cuts are major news. Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne has told his colleagues around the cabinet table that the Liberal government must cut operational spending by 7.5 per cent for the 2026-27 fiscal year, 10 per cent the following year and 15 per cent in 2028-29. Carney has already ruled out cuts to provincial transfers and pensions and other old-age supports.
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The Liberal government has also ruled out cuts to programs like child care, pharmacare and dental care, while also committing to increased spending on defence. There is either a magic money tree in Carney’s garden or pain on the way for Ottawa’s army of public servants, as their salaries and benefits are a key part of “operational spending.”
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I’m old enough to remember the furore around the Harper government’s proposed cuts to return to a balanced budget in the wake of the 2008-09 financial crisis. Indeed, I was the man who had to answer the many, many media questions about said cuts. And so it’s astonishing to see how little coverage is being generated by what will be, in absolute terms, much bigger cuts.
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Of course, it helps that Trudeau grew the size of the federal public service so much that achieving a similar quantum to the Harper era would be child’s play. Senior Liberals say they will achieve much of the reduction by eliminating vacant positions and “reallocating” staff rather than giving public servants the boot. Unions like PSAC are skeptical about those promises, as well they should be.
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Enter that other great media attention hog: artificial intelligence. Everyone is now talking about AI, holding it up to be either a demon or a saviour. Carney and Evan Solomon, his new AI minister, are promising the latter, at least with respect to achieving efficiencies in program delivery without compromising service levels. But you should never trust anyone who says tough goals can be achieved without pain.
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What’s more, the kinds of improvements Canadians are looking for in their lives will not be achieved without a federal public service that’s fit and firing on all cylinders. Taking a scythe through the fields of bureaucrats at the same time as they are being called on to deliver will be difficult on morale. And so it is incumbent on Carney and his ministers to be as specific as they can on what is required, and what is surplus to requirements. It is not enough to hide behind the promise of technology and operational efficiencies.
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