Trudeau’s Housing Gambit Has Business Worried About Tax Hikes
- Finance minister has pledged to keep deficit at C$40 billion
- Government has announced billions to address housing shortage
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the College of Carpenters and Allied Trades Training Centre in Woodbridge, Ontario, on Friday, April 12.
Photographer: Arlyn McAdorey/BloombergPrime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government is set to unveil an ambitious budget aimed at fixing housing affordability and helping young Canadians — but the big question is whether it will raise taxes to pay for it.
The government has already announced at least C$46 billion ($33.4 billion), including C$17 billion in loans, for measures that include boosting housing supply, supporting artificial intelligence development and increasing defense spending. But the cost of debt is growing, and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland has promised to keep its deficits under control in the budget to be released Tuesday.