You’ll Have to Sacrifice!
During a town hall several years ago, former Prime Minister Trudeau told a military veteran that veterans were asking more than what the government could give. Now it’s a twist of déjà vu, Prime Minister Carney is delivering the same message – this time to Canada’s youth. While unveiling a budget that is predicted to double the deficit of Mr. Trudeau’s, Prime Minister Carney is lecturing young Canadians on the need to “sacrifice.”
The irony is hard to miss: after years of government overspending and broken promises, it’s not politicians tightening their belts – it’s the next generation being told to pay the price.
After the C.D. Howe Institute handed the Liberal government a D for fiscal accountability and an F for its fiscal 2025-26 performance, and Statistics Canada confirmed we are facing the worst inflation in 40 years, the Liberal government had the audacity to come back to Canadians for more.
Recently, Prime Minister Carney told a room full of Ottawa University students they need to make sacrifices. The message also sounded eerily familiar – another version of the “we are all in this together” line used during the COVID years, when some could work comfortably from home while others lost their livelihoods
Last election, Conservatives pledged to reform the tax system – because fairness and simplicity must be restored for everyday taxpayers. Over the past decade, loopholes and complexities have overwhelmingly benefited the wealthy and well-connected. Take Brookfield Asset Management, for example—the very company that Mark Carney chaired before becoming Prime Minister, and which he relocated to New York. During a recent committee meeting, Conservative MP Michael Cooper asked a witness who was the Principal Analyst for the Centre for International Corporate Tax Accountability and Research to define a “tax gap” – the difference between taxes actually paid an those that should have paid. Between 2017 and 2021, Brookfields tax gap amounted to more than $6.5 billion. The witness also confirmed that Brookfield has been called the largest tax dodger among 133 corporations, calling it “an indication of a major underpayment of taxes.”
$6.5 billion—even if the true figure were smaller—is a staggering amount of money. And while the well-connected seem to get breaks, young Canadians are being told they must “sacrifice” more. Yet what’s left to give? Many have already sacrificed their dream of homeownership, face soaring grocery bills, and struggle to find summer jobs to afford their education.
Over the past decade, Liberal policies have already demanded too much. Youth unemployment is climbing, and high taxes, anti-development laws, and the overuse of the Temporary Foreign Worker program have deepened the challenges.
Canadians do not need more slogans or recycled talking points. What we need is a responsible, transparent budget – one that restores fiscal discipline, rebuilds confidence, and charts a clear path for the next generations.
Conservatives have real solutions: scrap hidden food taxes, cut taxes on work and homebuilding, and stop the inflation tax. It’s time to restore hope and opportunity for Canada’s youth.