A new poll shows the share of Canadians feeling pessimistic about the federal government has reached a new high.
This should come as no surprise. Years of poor policies have left Canadians with a stagnant economy and declining living standards. Despite the Trudeau government’s recent focus on younger generations, young people appear to be the most pessimistic of all.
According to the poll conducted by Nanos, 39.8% of Canadians felt “pessimism” toward the federal government — representing a seven-year high. On the flip side, 7.6% felt “satisfaction,” a seven-year low.
More broadly, 68.7% of respondents reported negative feelings (“anger” or “pessimism”) toward the federal government, while just 16.3% reported positive feelings (“optimism” or “satisfaction.”) The remaining 15% either weren’t sure or were simply disinterested.
Again, it’s not surprising the majority of Canadians report negative feelings about Ottawa in light of the Trudeau government’s fiscal and economic mismanagement.
For example, due to record-high spending, the Trudeau government will run its 10th consecutive budget deficit in 2024-25 at a projected $39.8 billion. These deficits have contributed to a remarkable rise in federal government debt since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau first took office. From 2014-15 (the Stephen Harper government’s last full year) to 2024-25, federal gross debt is expected to have about doubled to $2.1 trillion. And the Trudeau government has no plans to change course. Deficits are expected to continue until at least 2028-29 and projections suggest gross debt will increase an additional $400.1 billion over the same period.
What have Canadians gained from all this spending and debt?
Through the implementation of sweeping programs such as $10-a-day childcare and national dental care, the Trudeau government has expanded its role in the lives of Canadians. But because the government has chosen to use taxpayer dollars to provide services that were already offered privately, many Canadians have less choice in how to best use their hard-earned money due to the imposition of higher taxes. Indeed, 86% of middle-income families now pay more in taxes than they did in 2015, adding to the cost of living.
At the same time, Ottawa and some provinces have spent tens of billions of dollars on corporate welfare with the promise that it will promote economic growth. But over the last decade, the economy has posted its worst performance since the 1930s; Canadian living standards have been in historic decline since mid-2019.
Finally, the burden of government debt and poor economic prospects may be why younger generations are feeling the most pessimistic. Indeed, among survey respondents aged 18 to 34, 41.3% were “pessimistic” about the federal government, while just 5.3% were “satisfied” (the largest and smallest shares, respectively, relative to all other age groups).
Despite the Trudeau government’s rhetoric about “generational fairness,” younger generations face a disproportionately higher tax burden in the future due to debt accumulated today. Meanwhile, according to long-term projections, Canadian living standards will fall further behind comparable countries (including the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom) over the coming decades.
Canadians are worse off today than 10 years ago and should expect higher taxes and relatively little improvement in their living standards in coming years due to poor government policy. Is it any wonder they’re feeling pessimistic?
— Fuss and Munro are fiscal policy analysts at the Fraser Institute.