Conservative finance critic Pierre Poilievre said the Liberal government has left Canadians without a “cushion” to soften potential economic fallout from the global coronavirus outbreak and impacts of rail blockades across the country.
Conservative finance critic Pierre Poilievre said the Liberal government has left Canadians without a “cushion” to soften potential economic fallout from the global coronavirus outbreak and impacts of rail blockades across the country.
“They spent the cupboard bare in the good times and now we face a crisis, and we have nothing left … to take on that crisis,” Poilievre said Sunday during a speech outlining the Conservative Party’s priorities for the upcoming federal budget.
“We now have economic problems, but we have no surplus with which to cushion ourselves against those problems.”
Finance Minister Bill Morneau revealed Friday that the Trudeau government’s budget would include measures to handle the “clear” threat COVID-19 poses to Canada’s economy.
Morneau added that he would also boost the risk adjustment provision in the budget, which acts as a contingency plan that will ensure “we are ready and able to respond” to economic repercussions.
WATCH: Morneau on COVID-