Matthew Lau: It’s financial literacy month. Liberals need a lesson

Content of the article

Some things don’t make sense. For example, in order of increasing absurdity: a horse race without a horse, a physicist claiming that water rises, the Maple Leafs holding a seminar on how to win a playoff series, and the feds giving lessons in financial literacy. No institution is so singularly unqualified to teach financial literacy, and yet the government has undertakeen the task.

Content of the article

“Financial Literacy Month”, Chrystia Freeland said last week, reminds us that many tools are available to Canadians to help them plan their budget, repay their debts and set financial goals. This month’s theme is “managing money in a changing world,” with sub-themes like finding financial balance, managing debt, planning for the future, and borrowing wisely. Two days later, Freeland continued his remarks on financial literacy with the fall of the government economic update, in which she laid out her plans to: manage other people’s money more, fail to balance the budget, increase debt dramatically, impoverish the future, and borrow recklessly. A person might conclude that the most reasonable thing to do would be to reject the Liberal government.

Content of the article

Content of the article

In the fiscal update, the Liberals make it clear that they have abused the pandemic to permanently and dramatically increase government costs. In Budget 2019, itself already a bloated spending plan, program spending is expected to reach $358.4 billion in 2022-23. April’s budget raised that to $434.3 billion, and over the next seven months the government added another $13.3 billion, so the fall economic update projects $447.6 billion in program spending for this fiscal year – an increase of $89.2 billion, or about 25%, from its pre-pandemic baseline. In addition to increased program spending, interest on the public debt is expected to rise from $26.9 billion in the 2022 budget to $34.7 billion in the latest forecast.

Content of the article

Ironically, the money management advice tops the government’s Financial Literacy Month homepage website advises Canadians to pay down their debts, because “a rise in interest rates can cost you more to borrow money”. Minister Freeland, who stated in her budget speech in 2021 that, because interest rates were low, his government’s massive spending commitments were so affordable that they would be short-sighted not to spend all that money, apparently doesn’t follow the financial advice of her own website – or at least not when it’s other people’s money she’s spending and other people will pay the billions in borrowing fees additional.

The very first article of the government’promotional toolbox for Financial Literacy Month is an infographic advising people to “review your budget to see where you can cut spending” and “avoid taking on more debt.” Here are some other tips along these lines: “Take control of your debt by reducing your expenses.” That’s good advice, but it’s not something the government that brought Canadians the ArriveCan $54 million, $6,000 a night hotel debacle is likely to follow. And instead of a spending review, the financial update introduces more spending of all kinds: more money to subsidize college students, more for renewable energy programs and, most notably, the slush fund.” Growth Canada” program of $15 billion which will Mrs. Freeland playing venture capital with taxpayers’ money.

Content of the article

Except she doesn’t even. Venture capitalists try to make money. Government “investors” seek to achieve political goals while losing other people’s money. With its so-called growth fund, the federal government prepare accepting lower returns – albeit at higher risk – to encourage investment in climate change projects. Funds mandate is to transform Canada’s economy to net zero emissions faster, through investments aligned with the government’s net zero goals and ESG (Environment, Social and Governance) principles. These latter criteria suggest that only companies that bother with climate reporting and disclosures will be eligible for government largesse. It’s as if the purpose of the $15 billion was to impose business inefficiency on the private sector.

Content of the article

Despite all this, Ms. Freeland insisted in her economic statement that the government is charting a “fiscally responsible course”. It’s absurd. Residents of his riding, University-Rosedale, better not waste their time listening to his lessons on financial literacy and responsibility. Preparing Yonge Street for a Stanley Cup parade carries less risk of disappointment than looking to this government for fiscal responsibility.

Matthew Lau is a Toronto writer.