Federal budget lacks transparency, overestimates job growth: PBO
Posted April 6, 2016 9:42 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
OTTAWA, ON. (NEWS 1130) – Canada’s Parliamentary Budget Office has released a new report criticizing the Federal Liberals for their first budget.
The PBO says the budget, which is projecting years of deficits, lacks transparency and over estimates job creation numbers.
The short report from the officer says it is difficult for parliamentarians to scrutinize the budget, because as deputy Parliamentary Budget Officer Mostafa Askari explains, the plan leaves out important detailed tables and financial data.
“It brings into question the credibility of the final numbers that they have in the budget because if you make too many big assumptions then when I look at the numbers I would say, ‘Why should I believe those numbers?”
He adds Ottawa also underestimated the GDP projections and inflated their job growth. The government claims it will create 100,000 jobs over two years, but Askari says the figure will be closer to 60,000.
The Federal Liberals first budget was released a couple of weeks ago, and with a majority government, it’s expected to easily pass through the House of Commons.
