More than a week after Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland presented her federal budget, we still don’t officially know whether it will pass a vote in the House of Commons as the NDP’s Jagmeet Singh hasn’t committed to supporting it. What’s behind his party’s will-they-or-won’t-they dance?
Considering where the polls stand today, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the Liberals certainly need the budget to pass to avoid an election. They also hope it will start a positive trend that will help them close the gap on Pierre Poilievre’s Conservatives. But early indications are that it isn’t having the desired effect — at least not yet.
To break down the politics of the budget and where things go from here, I’m joined this week by Stephanie Levitz of the Toronto Star and the CBC’s Aaron Wherry.
THE NUMBERS: On this week’s episode of The Numbers podcast, available for Patreon members here, Philippe and I chat about the latest numbers on how Canadians are reacting to the budget. We also delve into some polling controversy in Quebec where two different polls report two very different situations in the province.
In addition to listening to this episode of The Writ Podcast in your inbox, at TheWrit.ca or on podcast apps like Apple Podcasts, you can also watch this episode on YouTube.
Ep. #124: Budget bumps and bluffs