The House of Commons Finance Committee met on May 26, 2026, as part of its pre-budget consultations for the 2026 federal budget, hearing from 13 witnesses representing aerospace, agriculture, steel construction, helium, clean technology, hydrogen, municipal government, retail, and craft brewing.
Mike Mueller, of the Aerospace Industries Association of Canada, welcomed the removal of the luxury tax on aircraft and urged the committee to ensure defence funding reaches 2% of GDP. He called for a complementary federal aerospace industrial strategy alongside the defence industrial strategy, procurement reform, and a review of Transport Canada’s aviation certification resources to maintain Canada’s ability to certify aircraft domestically.
Janice Tranberg and Curtis Vander Heyden, of the Alberta Cattle Feeders’ Association, warned that a Mercosur trade deal would undercut Canadian cattle prices and food security, given Brazil’s lower standards. They recommended protecting tariff-free Canada-U.S. beef trade, raising the AgriStability cap to $15 million with a five-year review, and creating a permanent agricultural foreign worker program with a path to permanent residency, noting that current two-year LMIAs are too short.
Keanin Loomis, of the Canadian Institute of Steel Construction, said the 25% surtax on steel derivatives has not sufficiently curbed unfairly priced imports from China, citing a $8 price gap on a standard bolt. He recommended doubling the surtax to 50%, expanding the buy Canadian policy to all federally funded projects, and reducing freight rates for steel transport, including marine shipping.
Richard Dunn, of the Helium Developers Association of Canada, described a worsening global helium supply crisis after an attack on Qatar’s Ras Laffan facility took one-third of world supply offline. He noted that Canada has the fifth-largest helium resource but no domestic liquefaction capacity, and he asked the government to designate helium as a mineral resource and qualify it for the critical mineral exploration tax credit, as was done for lithium from brines in budget 2023.
Akshay Dubey, of CVW Sustainable Royalties Inc., presented a technology that reprocesses oil sands tailings to recover hydrocarbons and critical minerals like titanium and zircon, which he said could add $48 billion to GDP and reduce methane emissions by 90%. He recommended expanding the CCUS and clean technology manufacturing investment tax credits to include methane prevention and tailings reprocessing, and adding titanium and zircon to the list of eligible critical minerals.
Jason Clark, of New Economy Canada, and Moe Kabbara, of The Transition Accelerator, both stressed the need to double Canada’s electricity grid, requiring up to $1 trillion by 2050. Clark recommended extending clean economy investment tax credits to 2040 and investing in major transmission projects, while Kabbara argued the current $25-billion clean electricity ITC is insufficient against a $30-billion annual need and called for federal loan guarantees or concessional financing to manage utility debt and keep rates affordable. Kabbara also endorsed a “pragmatic climate reset,” acknowledging that 2030 targets were never achievable and that electrification is now driven by economics and sovereignty, not just climate goals.
Brandon Moffatt, of StormFisher Hydrogen, asked for two changes to the clean hydrogen investment tax credit: allowing all hydrogen derivatives, not just ammonia, to receive the 15% credit, and adopting a European-style rule that grids over 90% renewable unlock the 40% credit, noting that Quebec’s 99.6% renewable grid is currently treated as 10 times dirtier than European grids. He said these changes would cost $94 million over 10 years but generate $145 million in federal tax revenue.
Brad Goddard, of the Canadian Craft Brewers Association, said the federal excise tax definition of a small brewery tops out at 75,000 hectolitres, while provinces recognize craft up to 500,000 hectolitres, creating a steep tax climb that punishes growth. He asked for a progressive excise rate schedule up to 500,000 hectolitres and for the temporary 50% reduction on the first 15,000 hectolitres to be made permanent, arguing the changes could be revenue-neutral based on an MNP economic impact study.
Damien Silès, of the Conseil québécois du commerce de détail, reported that 30% of Quebecers have bought from Temu in the last six months and called for a legal definition of ultra-fast fashion to give customs tools to inspect products. He also recommended strengthening federal inspection and enforcement capacity and launching a national awareness campaign about product safety, environmental costs, and local economic impacts.
Tim Tierney, of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, said municipalities own 60% of Canada’s infrastructure but receive only 8% of tax revenues, and he called for scaling up the build communities strong fund and accelerating its direct delivery streams. He also asked for $3.5 billion in permanent annual funding for the Reaching Home program to address a 20% increase in homelessness over the last decade, stressing that housing, health care, and social services must be coordinated.
Charles-Félix Ross, of the Union des producteurs agricoles, said Canada underinvests in agricultural research compared to other OECD countries and criticized the closure of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s Quebec City research centre. He recommended raising the AgriStability trigger to 85% of the reference margin with a permanent 90% compensation rate, setting the interest-free portion of the advance payments program at $350,000, and creating a 40% tax credit for small farm equipment purchases. He also opposed the Alto high-speed rail project, arguing it would split 2,000 properties and that existing CN rights-of-way offer a cheaper alternative.
The committee also heard brief exchanges on the temporary foreign worker program, with Tranberg and Vander Heyden supporting a four-year LMIA and a direct path to permanent residency, and on the need to simplify investment tax credit applications, with Clark noting that CRA delays have hindered project proponents. No procedural motions or votes were recorded during this meeting.
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