Morneau to table federal budget Feb. 27

Finance Minister Bill Morneau will introduce the federal government’s next budget on Feb. 27 as the country faces persistent uncertainty around trade and competitiveness.

With the future clouded by such unknowns, private-sector experts will press Morneau to keep his fiscal powder dry when they gather later this week for their annual pre-budget meeting.

Morneau, who announced the budget date Tuesday in the House of Commons, sits down Friday in Toronto with leading economists at a roundtable that typically includes about a dozen experts from commercial banks, think tanks and trade associations.

Read: Experts urge Morneau to proceed with caution in 2018 budget

Finance ministers routinely call on outside economists for input and forecasts as part of the budget-writing process. Their projections are averaged to create a fiscal foundation for the budget.

Some economists say that late-2017 improvements in the economy will likely give Morneau more fiscal elbow room in the budget, compared to his October update. Others are less optimistic about the changes in recent months and expect the government to find itself in a similar budgetary position.

But regardless of the fiscal footing, there’s agreement that the government should proceed with caution. They want Ottawa to make sure it’s ready for the still-unknown impacts of the drawn-out renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement and the U.S. move to slash corporate taxes.

On Tuesday, Morneau offered a preview of what the government narrative surrounding the budget will likely sound like.

“We’ve seen real improvements over the last couple of years for middle-class Canadians—more confidence and among the lowest unemployment rates in the last 40 years,” he said during question period.

“But there’s more work to do, Mr. Speaker. On Feb. 27, we’re going to announce the next budget to continue our plan.”

Also read: Morneau on what to expect in 2018 budget

Andy Blatchford, The Canadian Press

Andy Blatchford is a reporter with The Canadian Press, a national news agency headquartered in Toronto and founded in 1917.