Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne said Thursday's federal budget will focus on affordability and Canadian sovereignty, under the title Masters of Our Destiny. Speaking while buying new shoes for the speech, he listed rent, food and gas prices as top concerns and said Canada must open new markets and buy Canadian whatever happens south of the border. Sources told The Globe and Mail the plan will also address strategic independence, possibly including space policy. Already flagged measures include a $36-billion Productivity Mega Deduction, an extended federal gas-tax cut and the planned $25-billion Canada Strong Fund. Conservatives demand deeper cost-of-living relief measures.
Canadian negotiators have proposed breaking the planned purchase of up to 12 Type 212CD submarines from Germany into two batches, three sources told CBC News. Ottawa would commit to eight boats up front and decide on four more later. The idea came up during meetings in Ottawa last week with German builder TKMS and Norway's Kongsberg. Officials want to keep options open for future governments, since deliveries won't begin until the mid-2030s, and some question whether drones could eventually replace crewed submarines. Germany is studying how a smaller order might affect the $86 billion in promised economic benefits for Canada.
Prime Minister Mark Carney met leaders from the Commonwealth's other 55 member countries in Antigua on Tuesday, November 3, as Americans headed to the polls back home. The summit is the first of several multilateral meetings this month where Canadian officials hope to build alternative partnerships in trade, security and diplomacy. Trade clearly dominated the agenda, with the Commonwealth aiming to lower barriers and double trade among members before its next summit in two years. Earlier, Foreign Minister Anita Anand and fellow ministers welcomed Gabon's return to elected government after its membership was partly suspended following a 2023 military coup.
