On Tuesday, Canada’s Minister of Finance, the Honourable Francois-Philippe Champagne, tabled federal government’s first Spring Economic Statement (SES). This is an opportunity for the federal government to provide an update on its economic positioning and progress to date.
The government expects GDP growth of 1.1 per cent in 2026 and 1.9 per cent in 2027, marginally lower compared to projections in Budget 2025. The deficit is projected to be $11 billion lower than previously forecasted in the 2025-2026 fiscal year. Prime Minister Mark Carney credited this comparatively rosier outlook to his team, describing them as "good fiscal managers" who are "determined to get spending down."
The Spring Economic Statement is the first of its kind from the federal government, which previously tabled a similar document in the fall. This year’s statement was a close collaboration between the Ministry of Finance and the Prime Minister’s Office, in sharp contrast to previous Economic Statements, which invited input from other Cabinet Ministers. It was developed with direct feedback from the Prime Minister himself, and focuses on four key themes:
Supporting Workers and Young People
The Federal government is launching “Team Canada Strong” to recruit, train, and hire 80,000 to 100,000 new Red Sea skilled trades workers by 2030-31, creating paid, direct pathways for young Canadians to help build housing, major infrastructure, and defence capacity at speed and scale.
This initiative will include:
$2 billion to help young people start working in the skilled trades through paid, job-ready placements that lead directly into registered apprenticeships.
Up to $10,000 per apprentice to support employers, particularly small and medium-sized businesses, to hire, train, and retain apprentices, including help matching workers to jobs.
Enhanced income supports during training, including a $400 per week Apprenticeship training Grant, up to a total payment of $16,000, while apprentices are in mandatory in-class technical training, so more can complete their training.
$5,000 one-time bonus to apprentices obtaining certification in a Red Seal trade, and income supports for those between training and work.
$250 million over five years, and $45 million ongoing, to expand Canada’s skilled trades training capacity through the Canadian Armed Forces.
SES proposes to provide up to $331 million over five years, and $18 million ongoing, to boost and modernise apprenticeship training for a faster journey to the Red Seal, and expand and accelerate both union-led and employer-led training pathways.
Extend for the 2026-27 academic year the increases to Canada Student Grants to support 571,000 students and interest-free Canada Student Loans to benefit and additional 422,000 students.
Enhancing the labour mobility deduction from $4,000 to $10,000 to make it more affordable for skilled workers to travel to where jobs are available
Making the Employee Ownership Trust tax exemption permanent to help more workers share in the success of the businesses they help build.
Many of these measures are consistent with the requests that HRAI has been making of the federal government over the past several years, focusing not only on drawing young people into the trades, but also incentivizing employers (i.e. contractors) – especially small and medium-sized businesses that make up the bulk f the industry.
Canada’s Own Sovereign Wealth Fund
A key feature of the SES is the Canada Strong Fund, a non-traditional sovereign wealth fund that will support direct capital investment. The fund will start with $25 billion from the federal government and grow further via contributions from individual Canadians.
Unlike other Sovereign Wealth Fund models, such as Norway’s, which collects revenues from state-owned sources for investment in financial assets, Canada’s model will more closely resemble an infrastructure bank. The Canada Strong Fund will focus on providing direct capital investments for domestic infrastructure projects and Canadian companies on a commercial basis, and alongside private sector investors. Canadians will have the opportunity to invest in the fund and share in the financial returns generated by these projects and companies.
Making Life More Affordable for Canadians
$42 million to enable factory-built housing, make homebuilding more efficient and innovative, and to improve the responsiveness of housing markets.
Streamlining rules and modernising building codes to make it easier to construct new homes, including factory-built and modular housing.
Accelerating over $7 billion in low-cost loans to speed up the construction of up to 16,500 new rental homes
Boosting housing supply across Canada with $1.7 billion through the Improving Housing Supply Act, to provinces and territories to remove barriers and accelerate homebuilding including reducing development fees and levies on new home construction.
With the unanimous support of provinces and territories, reducing the contribution rate of the base Canada Pension Plan
Making it easier to access the Disability Tax Credit by streamlining the application process for individuals with certain long-lasting medical conditions.
Expanding the Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage investment tax credit to include enhanced oil recovery (EOR)
Stronger and Safer Communities
Build strong communities with investment that ensure Canadians feel safe, including $75 million for the Canada Community Security Program
$755 million to host and compete with the best, support Canada’s world class athletes, and get more Canadians involved in sport
Nearly $1 billion to repair and maintain small craft harbours, essential infrastructure for coastal communities and commercial fishing.
Standing up the Financial Crimes Agency as Canada’s first-ever federal law enforcement agency dedicated to investigating serious and complex financial crimes and recovering the proceeds of crime
Nearly $4.3 billion in funding to empower healthy, thriving Indigenous communities.
Additional Relevant Items for HRAI:
-Building on the Buy Canadian Policy, the government will launch a new Small and Medium Business Procurement Program later this spring to make it easier for = - --Canadian firms to compete and win in federal procurements, my modernizing digital tools and reducing barriers.
The SES proposes to provide $2 billion in paid-in capital for FinDev Canada, as well as $732 million over three years on a cash basis, starting in 2028-29, to expand FinDeve Canada’s concessional finance facility. These measures will help to mobilize private capital at scale into climate-related businesses and projects in emerging markets and developing economies.
The SES proposes to support the Canadian Climate Institute to host a Sustainable Finance conference in the coming year, bringing together domestic and international stakeholders to promote progress on the Canadian taxonomy and discuss sustainable investment opportunities in Canada.
The launch of a Whole-of-Government Competition Plan to ensure that competition is prioritized throughout the federal government’s policies.
Although the Prime Minister remains highly popular with Canadians, he faces significant pressure and expectations from opposition parties, industry representatives, and international partners to demonstrate a positive economic record and maintain momentum.
