The sitting was dominated by debate on Bill C-15, the Budget 2025 Implementation Act, No. 1, with the central political argument turning on whether the budget represented a necessary investment in Canada’s future or a reckless accumulation of debt that would burden future generations. The government defended the budget as a response to a global economic shock caused by U.S. tariffs, while the Conservatives and Bloc Québécois attacked it for its $78.3-billion deficit and what they called “creative accounting.” The NDP and Green Party also opposed the budget, though for different reasons, citing austerity, corporate giveaways and a lack of environmental ambition.
Bill C-15, the budget implementation bill, would enact the government’s November 2025 budget, which includes major spending on infrastructure, defence, housing and social programs, as well as tax cuts for middle-class Canadians and a new personal support worker tax credit. The Conservatives opposed the bill in its entirety, arguing that the deficit—the largest outside a pandemic—would drive inflation, raise the cost of borrowing and leave future generations with unsustainable debt. They pointed to the Parliamentary Budget Officer’s warning that the government’s new “capital budgeting” framework inflated investment figures by $94 billion. The Bloc Québécois also voted against the bill, criticizing the extension of fossil fuel tax credits to 2041, the lack of a dedicated forestry aid package, and the absence of an increase to old age security for seniors aged 65 to 74. The NDP voted against the bill as well, arguing it was an austerity budget that cut 40,000 public service jobs, failed to address corporate greed, and provided no new funding for the toxic drug crisis or for murdered and missing indigenous women and girls. The Green Party leader voted for the budget at second reading after receiving a commitment from the Prime Minister to respect the Paris Agreement, but later expressed regret after the government signed a pipeline memorandum of understanding with Alberta. The bill remained at second reading at the close of the sitting.
Oral Questions were dominated by the day’s announcement of a memorandum of understanding between the Prime Minister and the Premier of Alberta on energy development, including a potential new pipeline to the Pacific coast. The Conservatives pressed the government for a firm construction date, accusing the Prime Minister of giving a veto to the NDP Premier of British Columbia and of using the deal to benefit his former company, Brookfield. The Bloc Québécois and NDP also attacked the pipeline plan, arguing it violated the rights of British Columbia and coastal first nations and contradicted Canada’s climate commitments. The government replied that the project would proceed only with the consent of British Columbia and indigenous peoples, and that the MOU also included commitments on carbon capture, clean electricity and methane regulations. A second major theme was the Prime Minister’s alleged conflict of interest involving Brookfield, with the Conservatives citing a series of major deals—including an $80-billion U.S. nuclear agreement—that they said followed the Prime Minister’s foreign travel. The government denied any impropriety and pointed to its record of attracting investment and creating jobs.