MP Randy Hoback at an event in Weldon on April 13, 2024. (Logan Lehmann/paNOW Staff)

By Derek Craddock

BUDGET REACTION

‘Lots of talk, no action’: Prince Albert MP responds to federal budget

Apr 17, 2024 | 1:00 PM

One day after a $535 billion budget was unveiled by the federal Liberals, Prince Albert’s Conservative MP is already giving it an F grade.

Randy Hoback spoke to paNOW following the budget announcment and while he admitted there were a lot of highlights and promises in the budget, he’s waiting to see if any of it will be put into action.

“Lots of spending, (but) no relief for our farmers, no relief for young families trying to build and buy their first house,” he said. “What we collect in GST across Canada is barely enough to just pay the interest on the debt.”

The federal Conservatives, along with the Bloc Quebecois have already said they will not support the budget.

“Conservatives will vote against this wasteful, inflationary budget that is like a pyromaniac spraying gas on the inflationary fire that he lit,” Poilievre said in the House of Commons following the budget.

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“It is getting too hot and too expensive for Canadians.”

Poilievre said the Liberals are promising things they haven’t delivered since forming government, and he pointed to high food prices and long lines at food banks as examples.

The Tories say the Liberals should cut taxes, so Canadians have more spending power, arguing that costly government programs aren’t helping the middle class or the working poor.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau shot back at Poilievre saying a vote against the budget is a vote against fairness for Canadians.

On Wednesday morning at a meeting of the Liberal caucus, Trudeau said it isn’t right that multi-millionaires are asked to pay less tax on capital gains than a teacher or electrician pays on their income.

He said the change would not affect 99.87 per cent of the population at all and does not apply to the sale of anyone’s primary residence.

Meanwhile Hoback said that he was hoping for money in the budget to address infrastructural needs in the smaller communities in his riding.

“There was some talk about it in the budget, but again the devil’s in the details. A lot of times when they put stuff like this in the budget, they do it so it’s good for the big cities of Vancouver and Montreal, and Toronto, but don’t necessarily work for the small towns like Weldon and Choiceland,” Hoback said, adding that the Liberals have a history of making promises and not delivering.

Hoback would have liked to see other measures in the budget for affordability, including removing the carbon tax for farmers on propane and fuel.

When asked if the Conservatives would claw back any programs or spending if they form government in 2025, Hoback said that’s just speculation right now.

“We know what they said in this budget. We haven’t seen the actual program. How the exact programs are going to work, it’s hard to say if that would be good or bad or should it be removed or saved. It’s just too early to say that until we actually see the book and see what exactly is implemented.”

–With files from The Canadian Press

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derek.craddock@pattisonmedia.com