Trudeau Has Buried Us In Debt

[spaminator]

Carney government doubling down on Trudeau’s failed fiscal policy
The Carney Liberals plan to spend more, run larger deficits, and accumulate more debt than even the Trudeau government had planned

Author of the article:Grady Munro, Jake Fuss
Published Apr 03, 2026 • Last updated 17 hours ago • 3 minute read

Mark Carney Liberal leadership candidate
Mark Carney gestures during a press conference following the second night of debate in the federal Liberal leadership race to replace Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the MELS studios in Montreal, Canada, on Feb. 25, 2025. Photo by Andrej Ivanov /AFP via Getty Images)
In the coming weeks, the government of Prime Minister Mark Carney is expected to update Canadians on the state of federal finances.


It should be an interesting update.


During the election last April, in an attempt to distance itself from former prime minister Justin Trudeau’s government, the Carney campaign promised a “very different approach” to federal finances to improve Canada’s economy. Based on the experiences of past federal governments, this approach should include spending restraint, balanced budgets and debt reduction.

Unfortunately for Canadians, the Carney government is doubling down on the Trudeau government’s failed approach.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
File photo of former prime minister Justin Trudeau. Photo by Justin Tang /THE CANADIAN PRESS FILES
Trudeau’s legacy as prime minister is one of historically poor fiscal management. During his tenure, the federal government recorded the highest spending levels on record, which resulted in nine consecutive deficits and the highest levels of debt accumulation on record (after accounting for population changes and inflation).


Moreover, compared to the Stephen Harper and Jean Chrétien governments, the Trudeau government presided over the weakest economic performance across a variety of measures, including growth in per-person gross domestic product or GDP (a broad measure of individual living standards), private-sector job creation and per-worker business investment (which helps workers become more productive and earn higher incomes).

Conversely, the Chrétien government reduced spending, consistently balanced the budget and reduced government debt, which corresponded with the strongest economic performance of the three governments.


Carney government should reject Trudeau’s fiscal policies
Based on this evidence, to deliver on its promise of a strong economy, the Carney government should reject the fiscal policies of Trudeau and instead emulate Chrétien’s approach. But as noted in our new study, that’s not happening.

For example, according to the Carney government’s first budget released in November, from fiscal years 2025-2026 to 2029-2030, the Carney government plans to spend $67.6 billion more than the Trudeau government planned for the same five-year period in its last fiscal update.

Combined with slower projected revenue growth, the Carney government’s higher planned spending will produce combined deficits of $321.7 billion over the five years – more than double what the Trudeau government had planned ($154.5 billion).


Consequently, the Carney government projects total federal debt will reach $2.9 trillion by 2029-2030 compared to $2.6 trillion under the Trudeau plan. Clearly, the Carney government plans to spend more, run larger deficits, and accumulate more debt than even the Trudeau government had planned.


And in the months since releasing its first budget, the Carney government has only further doubled down.

For example, the government recently introduced a new “affordability” package centred around a five-year, 25% increase to the quarterly federal GST payment for eligible Canadians, along with a one-time additional GST payment equal to 50% of the normal payment. This poorly targeted package, which will send cash to many individuals who don’t need it, follows the same “affordability” strategy as the Trudeau government. And it comes with an estimated price tag of $12.4 billion.

After a decade of fiscal mismanagement and economic stagnation under the Trudeau government, the Carney government must change course if it wants different results. But so far, it’s delivered much of the same – higher spending, more borrowing and more debt.

The government’s upcoming fiscal update would be a good place to start moving in a new direction.

– Grady Munro is a senior analyst and Jake Fuss is the director of fiscal studies at the Fraser Institute

OPINION: Carney government doubling down on Trudeau’s failed fiscal policy

In the coming weeks, the Mark Carney government is expected to update Canadians on the state of federal finances. Read more.

torontosun.com

 

[Tecumsehsbones]

Who do y'all think you are, America?

 

[spaminator]

Prime Minister Mark Carney billed $524K on in-flight catering during first year as PM
One flight from Ottawa to Washington spent 11 times more on in-flight meals than what the RCAF spent on fuel

Author of the article:Bryan Passifiume
Published Apr 10, 2026 • Last updated 14 hours ago • 4 minute read

Prime Minister Mark Carney speaks with members of the media before he boards a government plane in Ottawa on Friday Oct. 24, 2025.
Prime Minister Mark Carney speaks with members of the media before he boards a government plane in Ottawa on Friday Oct. 24, 2025. Photo by Adrian Wyld /The Canadian Press
OTTAWA — Mark Carney’s first year as prime minister saw over half a million dollars spent on in-flight catering aboard CANFORCE ONE.


And one trip from Ottawa to Washington, taking the PM to a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump, saw the prime ministerial aircraft pay over 11 times more on food than what was spent on fuel.


Those numbers come courtesy of data contained within order paper questions (OPQ) filed in the House of Commons, which show the PMO billed taxpayers $524,815.04 across 28 separate trips between March 2025 and February 2026.

“Carney billed more money for airplane food in one year than an average Canadian family will spend on groceries in about 30 years,” Franco Terrazzano, federal director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, told the Toronto Sun.

“I guess one way to beat the high cost of groceries in Canada is to take government work trips and bill taxpayers for expensive airplane food.”

Indeed, the 2026 Food Price Report puts the average annual grocery costs for a family of four at $17,571.79 — a $1,000 increase from 2025, thanks to Canada’s projected 2026 food inflation of between four and six per cent.



$158K spent on one trip, $21K spent on 2-hour flight to DC
For most business and personal travel, the prime minister customarily relies on a fleet of aircraft operated by the Royal Canadian Air Force.

Bombardier Challenger 650 business jets operated by 412 Transport Squadron, based out of Ottawa International Airport, are largely used for domestic trips, while international flights are handled by 437 Transport Squadron at CFB Trenton, who maintain a fleet of newly-acquired CC-330 Huskies — military versions of the Airbus A330-200 airliners which replaced the now-obsolete CC-150 Polaris transport planes.

The costliest trip for in-flight catering was the PM’s visit to the United Arab Emirates and the G20 leaders summit in Johannesburg, where a total of $158,986.43 was spent just on food.

According to a note attached to the OPQ, the Department of National Defence said catering costs “include the cost of food, non-alcoholic beverages, and associated fees, including catering handling and delivery, storage, cleaning and disposal of international waste, airport taxes, administrative fees, security charges, and local taxes.”


Fifty-five people accompanied the PM on that trip, including Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand, various PMO and Privy Council Office (PCO) staffers, official photographers Lars Hagberg and Daniel Pereira, and two external advisors.

None of the 55 names listed on the passenger manifest included members of the Parliamentary Press Gallery.

Carney's Top 5 catering expenses
Top 5 in-flight catering expenses for trips during Mark Carney’s first year as prime minister. Photo by Toronto Sun graphic
Tens of thousands of dollars spent on feeding flights to Washington
Despite the flight taking less than two hours, big bucks were also spent on trips between Ottawa and Washington, D.C.

On the PM’s first official visit to Washington, D.C., on May 5, $21,158 was spent on in-flight catering, with no information provided on who else was on the trip.

For the PM’s second Washington visit, taking place five months later that October, the PMO billed $16,824.65 for in-flight refreshments for the 55 people who tagged along on the CC-330 Husky — nearly 11 times more than what that trip cost in fuel.

Passenger manifests for that trip listed a slate of cabinet ministers, PMO and PCO staffers, and a delegation from the Parliamentary Press Gallery.


Other pricey flights included $60,268.31 spent on the PM’s first international trip from March 17 to 18 last year, attending a 30-minute audience with the King and a sit-down with UK PM Keir Starmer.

That trip took place just days after Carney was sworn in as PM.

Attending Pope Leo XIV’s inaugural mass at the Vatican came with a $93,780.18 catering bill — a trip where Carney was accompanied by a delegation of Catholic MPs and Indigenous leaders.

The PM’s June 22-25, 2025, trip to Brussels to attend the 20th Canada‑EU Leaders’ Summit cost $49,043.37 in airplane food, while the two-day trade mission to Mexico City came with a $33,903.37 in-flight catering bill

Invitations for comment to the PMO by the Toronto Sun went unacknowledged by press time.



Not all information disclosed
Requests to disclose which hotels officials stayed at, or how much was spent on lodging, were withheld by the RCMP, citing security concerns, and unlike previous releases on in-flight catering, details on the menu were also not included.


A contributing factor for the furor kicked up over Governor General Mary Simon’s infamous overseas trips concerned the menu — including beef wellington served with red wine jus, $190 fresh fruit platters and $150 for lemon and lime slices served during her 2022 trip to the Middle East that saw $100,000 spent on airline food.

Fallout from that trip prompted hearings by the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates (OGGO), as well as reforms, including streamlining in-flight meals on government aircraft, and proactive disclosures.

Conservative Ethics Critic Michael Barrett told the Sun there’s no justification for these expenses.

“Mr. Carney and the Liberals need to explain to Canadians why they feel they are entitled to wine and dine themselves in luxury while Canadians continue to line up at food banks in record numbers, food inflation is the highest in the G7, and the Liberals continue to refuse to take the tax off at the pump to save Canadians $.25 a litre,” he said.

With the cost-of-living crisis making life increasingly unaffordable, Terrazzano said Canadians have every reason to be outraged.

“The government told taxpayers it would cut down on these extravagant international trips, but spending half a million dollars on airplane food doesn’t exactly scream fiscal responsibility,” he said.

“The government is more than $1 trillion in debt, Carney told Canadians he would save money and he needs to stop spending so much on these trips.”

bpassifiume@postmedia.com

Canada's Food Price Report 2026

dal.ca

Prime Minister Mark Carney billed $524K on in-flight catering during first year as PM

That, says the Canadian Taxpayers Federation's Franco Terrazzano, is what the average Canadian family would pay for 30 years of groceries.

torontosun.com

 

[Taxslave2]

Just wondering, does Carnage have shares or a family member in involved in supplying the food?

 

[pgs]

Prime Minister Mark Carney billed $524K on in-flight catering during first year as PM
One flight from Ottawa to Washington spent 11 times more on in-flight meals than what the RCAF spent on fuel

Author of the article:Bryan Passifiume
Published Apr 10, 2026 • Last updated 14 hours ago • 4 minute read

Prime Minister Mark Carney speaks with members of the media before he boards a government plane in Ottawa on Friday Oct. 24, 2025.
Prime Minister Mark Carney speaks with members of the media before he boards a government plane in Ottawa on Friday Oct. 24, 2025. Photo by Adrian Wyld /The Canadian Press
OTTAWA — Mark Carney’s first year as prime minister saw over half a million dollars spent on in-flight catering aboard CANFORCE ONE.


And one trip from Ottawa to Washington, taking the PM to a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump, saw the prime ministerial aircraft pay over 11 times more on food than what was spent on fuel.


Those numbers come courtesy of data contained within order paper questions (OPQ) filed in the House of Commons, which show the PMO billed taxpayers $524,815.04 across 28 separate trips between March 2025 and February 2026.

“Carney billed more money for airplane food in one year than an average Canadian family will spend on groceries in about 30 years,” Franco Terrazzano, federal director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, told the Toronto Sun.

“I guess one way to beat the high cost of groceries in Canada is to take government work trips and bill taxpayers for expensive airplane food.”

Indeed, the 2026 Food Price Report puts the average annual grocery costs for a family of four at $17,571.79 — a $1,000 increase from 2025, thanks to Canada’s projected 2026 food inflation of between four and six per cent.



$158K spent on one trip, $21K spent on 2-hour flight to DC
For most business and personal travel, the prime minister customarily relies on a fleet of aircraft operated by the Royal Canadian Air Force.

Bombardier Challenger 650 business jets operated by 412 Transport Squadron, based out of Ottawa International Airport, are largely used for domestic trips, while international flights are handled by 437 Transport Squadron at CFB Trenton, who maintain a fleet of newly-acquired CC-330 Huskies — military versions of the Airbus A330-200 airliners which replaced the now-obsolete CC-150 Polaris transport planes.

The costliest trip for in-flight catering was the PM’s visit to the United Arab Emirates and the G20 leaders summit in Johannesburg, where a total of $158,986.43 was spent just on food.

According to a note attached to the OPQ, the Department of National Defence said catering costs “include the cost of food, non-alcoholic beverages, and associated fees, including catering handling and delivery, storage, cleaning and disposal of international waste, airport taxes, administrative fees, security charges, and local taxes.”


Fifty-five people accompanied the PM on that trip, including Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand, various PMO and Privy Council Office (PCO) staffers, official photographers Lars Hagberg and Daniel Pereira, and two external advisors.

None of the 55 names listed on the passenger manifest included members of the Parliamentary Press Gallery.

Carney's Top 5 catering expenses
Top 5 in-flight catering expenses for trips during Mark Carney’s first year as prime minister. Photo by Toronto Sun graphic
Tens of thousands of dollars spent on feeding flights to Washington
Despite the flight taking less than two hours, big bucks were also spent on trips between Ottawa and Washington, D.C.

On the PM’s first official visit to Washington, D.C., on May 5, $21,158 was spent on in-flight catering, with no information provided on who else was on the trip.

For the PM’s second Washington visit, taking place five months later that October, the PMO billed $16,824.65 for in-flight refreshments for the 55 people who tagged along on the CC-330 Husky — nearly 11 times more than what that trip cost in fuel.

Passenger manifests for that trip listed a slate of cabinet ministers, PMO and PCO staffers, and a delegation from the Parliamentary Press Gallery.


Other pricey flights included $60,268.31 spent on the PM’s first international trip from March 17 to 18 last year, attending a 30-minute audience with the King and a sit-down with UK PM Keir Starmer.

That trip took place just days after Carney was sworn in as PM.

Attending Pope Leo XIV’s inaugural mass at the Vatican came with a $93,780.18 catering bill — a trip where Carney was accompanied by a delegation of Catholic MPs and Indigenous leaders.

The PM’s June 22-25, 2025, trip to Brussels to attend the 20th Canada‑EU Leaders’ Summit cost $49,043.37 in airplane food, while the two-day trade mission to Mexico City came with a $33,903.37 in-flight catering bill

Invitations for comment to the PMO by the Toronto Sun went unacknowledged by press time.



Not all information disclosed
Requests to disclose which hotels officials stayed at, or how much was spent on lodging, were withheld by the RCMP, citing security concerns, and unlike previous releases on in-flight catering, details on the menu were also not included.


A contributing factor for the furor kicked up over Governor General Mary Simon’s infamous overseas trips concerned the menu — including beef wellington served with red wine jus, $190 fresh fruit platters and $150 for lemon and lime slices served during her 2022 trip to the Middle East that saw $100,000 spent on airline food.

Fallout from that trip prompted hearings by the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates (OGGO), as well as reforms, including streamlining in-flight meals on government aircraft, and proactive disclosures.

Conservative Ethics Critic Michael Barrett told the Sun there’s no justification for these expenses.

“Mr. Carney and the Liberals need to explain to Canadians why they feel they are entitled to wine and dine themselves in luxury while Canadians continue to line up at food banks in record numbers, food inflation is the highest in the G7, and the Liberals continue to refuse to take the tax off at the pump to save Canadians $.25 a litre,” he said.

With the cost-of-living crisis making life increasingly unaffordable, Terrazzano said Canadians have every reason to be outraged.

“The government told taxpayers it would cut down on these extravagant international trips, but spending half a million dollars on airplane food doesn’t exactly scream fiscal responsibility,” he said.

“The government is more than $1 trillion in debt, Carney told Canadians he would save money and he needs to stop spending so much on these trips.”

bpassifiume@postmedia.com
View attachment 34041

Canada's Food Price Report 2026

dal.ca

Prime Minister Mark Carney billed $524K on in-flight catering during first year as PM

That, says the Canadian Taxpayers Federation's Franco Terrazzano, is what the average Canadian family would pay for 30 years of groceries.

torontosun.com

It is so much easier spending other people’s money .

 

[pgs]

Just wondering, does Carnage have shares or a family member in involved in supplying the food?

Probably a Brookfield subsidiary.

 

[spaminator]

Feds' equalization program flaws led to $10.5B in overpayments: Report
'Have not' provinces such as Ontario, Quebec and the Maritimes rewarded at the expense of 'have' provinces such as Alberta, B.C. and Saskatchewan: Fraser Institute


Author of the article:Lorrie Goldstein
Published Apr 16, 2026 • Last updated 1 day ago • 1 minute read

Parliament Hill in Ottawa, home to Canada’s House of Commons and Senate.
Parliament Hill in Ottawa, home to Canada’s House of Commons and Senate. Postmedia files
The federal equalization program is broken, resulting in $10.5 billion in overpayments to “have not” provinces such as Ontario, Quebec and the Maritimes, at the expense of “have” provinces such as Alberta, B.C. and Saskatchewan, according to a new study by the Fraser Institute.


The fiscally conservative think tank says the overpayments have occurred since 2018 because of a design flaw introduced in 2009 known as the fixed growth rate rule linking annual payments to the growth rate of the economy, which was intended to cap annual equalization increases.


The program, one of the largest components of federal transfer payments to the provinces, is supposed to ensure all provinces are able to provide comparable public services at comparable levels of taxation across the country.

Ben Eisen, co-author of the study: “Equalization Is Broken: How the Continuous Growth Requirement Inhibits Reform,” said “equalization should shrink when the ability of provinces to raise revenues — particularly between so-called ‘have’ and ‘have-not’ provinces — moves closer together.”



The problem is that the current formula does not account for the fact that the fiscal capacities of the provinces have been moving closer together over time, while the fixed growth rate rule now mandates upward adjustments to equalization payments instead of decreasing them.


While Alberta, Saskatchewan and B.C. receive no equalization payments and they account for just 0.2% of provincial revenues in Ontario and 1.7% in Newfoundland and Labrador, they are major contributors to Quebec where they account for 8.4% of provincial revenues, 19.3% in Manitoba, 20.5% in Nova Scotia, 20.7% in P.E.I. and 23.6% in New Brunswick.

“When a program designed to equalize fiscal capacity (in the provinces) can no longer adjust to relative changes in that capacity, its core mechanism is no longer functioning, as intended,” Eisen said.

“In order to make real equalization reforms possible, policymakers will first have to fix the growth requirement flaw.”

Feds' equalization program flaws led to $10.5B in overpayments: Report

The federal equalization program is broken, resulting in $10.5 billion in overpayments to “have not” provinces including Ontario. Read more.

torontosun.com

 

[spaminator]

Feds spend $1.2M on art exhibition that gives cameras to homeless
'The exact population is unknown'

Author of the articleostmedia News
Published Apr 16, 2026 • Last updated 21 hours ago • 1 minute read

Close-up of a camera lens.
Close-up of a camera lens. Getty Images
Nearly $1.2 million in federal money was set aside to fund an art exhibition handing out cameras to Canada’s homeless.

The project, entitled Reducing Homelessness For 2SLGBTQI Veterans by Egale Canada — a Toronto-based gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender advocacy group, involved handing cameras to homeless gay veterans to document their daily lives.


That’s according to reporting originally published by Blacklock’s Reporter.

“Home has many meanings and can include physical spaces, memories, and maybe even familiar sights or smells,” read Egale Canada’s project submission.

“Home isn’t always a physical space or fixed address. With your camera, take pictures of your surroundings, your environment, the spaces you navigate, sleep, eat, spend time relaxing or with others. Think about what the image reveals about your living space.”



How many gay homeless veterans are there?
According to government documents obtained by the online news outlet, funds totaling $1,199,921 were approved for the project by the Department of Housing.

One problem the group ran into was finding gay homeless veterans willing to participate — with organizers hoping to find 30 such willing individuals across five Canadian cities, they eventually narrowed down to Ottawa and a second, undisclosed city. The group admitted they had no data on exactly how many homeless LGBTQ+ veterans are living on city streets in the country.

“The exact population is unknown,” project organizers conceded.

“Information about 2SLGBTQI veterans and housing is extremely limited,” Egale also stated in their proposal.

A total of $1,499,976 was requested by Egale, Blacklock’s reported — including $1.1 million for Egale executives, $6,050 to purchase cameras, $2,800 to purchase laptops for staff, a $13,330 travel budget for workers, speakers and consultants, $43,400 in speaker’s fees, and $30,5000 in promotional costs.

Gave Homeless Free Cameras | Blacklock's Reporter

blacklocks.ca

Feds spend $1.2M on art exhibition that gives cameras to homeless

The project was by Egale Canada — a Toronto-based gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender advocacy group. Find out more.

torontosun.com

 

[spaminator]

CRA pays out fraudulent $5M tax refund: report
Court records claim a B.C. woman fraudulently claimed a refund on non-existent foreign income she claims came from "The United Nations"

Author of the articleostmedia News
Published Apr 16, 2026 • Last updated 1 day ago • 2 minute read

Canada Revenue Agency has collected $490 million in unpaid taxes since 2018 by following up on tips from informants, says a report. Read on.
The Canada Revenue Agency.
Despite submitting a “bogus” return allegedly containing falsified information, Canada’s tax agency erroneously handed out a $5 million tax refund to a single person.


That’s according to court records obtained by CBC’s The Fifth Estate, which shows the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) gave the hefty $4,958,716.63 refund in May 2025 to a B.C. woman who allegedly only made $54,000 annually running her West Kootenay region hemp and grain processing business.


“Upon review by the senior program officer at (refund examination headquarters,) it was determined (that one of the forms on file) was invalid, and the resulting $4.9-million refund from the erroneously allowed slip was unwarranted,” the CRA said in court document.


Fraudulent $5M part of a bigger problem at CRA
This comes just months after CBC News uncovered a $4.9 million refund handed out in 2023 to a Quebec body shop that the government accused of falsely claiming payment of taxes on a large capital gain, despite no records existing of such a transaction.

The two payments are part of a larger problem at the CRA, accused of automatically paying out large tax refunds without conducting even basic checks.


While the Quebec $4.9 million refund was just under CRA’s supposed threshold for triggering a manual review, court records show last May’s payment was indeed flagged for manual review, but nobody in the agency followed through.

According to court records, the woman is accused of falsely reporting $9,999,999 in foreign income during the 2023 tax year and claimed $5 million as an overpayment — but despite claiming she’d paid the exact same amount in income tax to the CRA, putting her in a situation where her tax rate was 100%, nobody in the CRA bothered to take a second look.



Woman’s assets frozen, recovery process ongoing
A CRA affidavit in the court records show the agency realized the mistake two months after the $5 million cheque was cut, and noted no action was taken even after the problem was brought to human attention.


Authorities now believe the woman paid no taxes at all that year, and that the nearly $10 million in foreign income she claimed — which she insisted came from “The United Nations” — never existed.

The CBC’s inquiries to the woman weren’t returned.

The CRA now determined she now owes the CRA $7.9 million — a figure that includes interest and penalties — and that authorities only managed to freeze $4.2 million of that amount.

An order was obtained in January to freeze the woman’s assets and efforts to recover the money are ongoing.

This payment came six months after former revenue minister Marie-Claude Bibeau and former CRA commissioner Bob Hamilton were dragged before the House Standing Ethics Committee to testify about previous bogus refunds issued by the agency.

http://cbc.ca/news/politics/politics-leaked-cra-mistaken-refund-9.6952217

http://cbc.ca/news/canada/cra-bogus-refund-9.7165058

CRA pays out fraudulent $5M tax refund: report

Canada's tax agency erroneously handed out a $5 million tax refund to a single person. Read more.

torontosun.com

 

[spaminator]

They call it Air Ford One. Doug Ford defends purchasing 'private' plane
Premier says the jet is needed 'to get to the U.S. to continue building the relationships' and help grow Ontario's economy


Author of the article:Joe Warmington
Published Apr 17, 2026 • Last updated 1 day ago • 5 minute read

031026-NEXTSTAR2
Mélanie Joly, Canada's Minister of Industry and Economic Development and Ontario Premier Doug Ford are shown at the NextStar Energy grand opening ceremony in Windsor on Thursday, March 5, 2026. Photo by Dan Janisse /The Windsor Star
They are already calling the Ontario Premier’s new “private” jet airplane purchase Air Ford One.


But Doug Ford calls the purchase of a plane for use by the government an investment in the province that will help it grow.


At an initial cost of more than $28-million, the real question is whether Ontario need its own plane for Ford and cabinet ministers?

And, in this tough economic time, is this the right time to buy one?

Ford tells the Toronto Sun it is.

Plane an Ontario investment, says Ford
Ford said the plane, which will operate of Toronto Pearson airport, will actually make Ontario money and help create jobs.

“We need to get to the U.S. to continue building the relationships,” he told the Sun. “When we went to Texas, we had 13 meetings in three cities in two and a half days.”

But when it was all done, Ontario came out well.

“We landed six billion dollars of investments,” he said.

The premier assured the plane is for legitimate travel with a view to helping the province grow.

“It will be for travel in the U.S. as well as Ontario,” he said, adding, “if there are emergencies, it will be used for that, as well to move people.”

He said it’s “much cheaper” to purchase Ontario’s own plane in the long run, rather than going the charter or commercial route.



But there is opposition to this.

“People are struggling with grocery costs,” said Interim Liberal Leader John Fraser in an interview with John Moore on Newstalk 1010.

And paying their mortgages or to fill up their own car, let alone fill up a government jet.

Calling the notion that it is a “private jet” inaccurate, the premier’s office was pushing back on the narrative that this is an extravagant buy.

“As part of the job of being Premier of Ontario, there is extensive travel within Ontario, a province twice the landmass of Texas,” said a statement from the premier’s office.

“This is in addition to travel across Canada for Council of the Federation and First Ministers’ Meetings, which have increased in frequency, as well as travel to the United States to help make the case against President Trump’s tariffs.”

041726-0607_na_jet
Bombardier Challenger 650. (Photo courtesy Bombardier) Photo by PHOTO COURTOISIE /PHOTO COURTOISIE/BOMBARDIER
Jet a second-hand purchase
The statement said the 2016 Bombardier Challenger Jet, purchased second-hand from South America, was made in Canada and at a far better price than a similar one procured by neighbouring Quebec.


“To support more certain, flexible, secure and confidential travel, the province purchased a pre-owned, 2016 made-in-Canada Challenger 650 for $28.9 million,” said the premier’s office.

“This is significantly less than the $107 million Quebec paid for its fleet of one pre-owned and two brand-new Challenger 650s or the $753 million the Government of Canada paid for its six new Global 6500 jets.”

That said, is the premier, his staff or cabinet in urgent need of such a big-ticket item? A While Ontario is a large province, every premier and government in the past has managed to get by without one.

This is a reasonable and necessary debate. Certainly, a province like Ontario is a big-time economic driver which competes with many places that have their own planes. It’s a global business world that is very competitive. As Brian Lilley reported this month, the premier has advocated the expense of extending the runways at Billy Bishop Airport on the waterfront — explaining that this is the business world’s need now.




There should be scrutiny if taxpayers’ money involved
But the optics are also the optics. Critics charge that this amounts to nothing more than a “private” jet for the Premier.

As NDP opposition leader Marit Styles said, this looks bad at a time when people are having a tough time making ends meet.

All sides on this have valuable arguments. Anytime taxpayers’ money is involved, there should be a lot of scrutiny on it.

Fraser said there is nothing wrong with renting a jet on a trip-by-trip basis. He said it can be more cost-effective to lease a charter jet when the premier needs to travel up north or to the United States, than to actually have one of his or her own.

It is a surprising development since Ford is both noted for trying to keep government costs down and for spending a lot of time running the province from his Etobicoke riding. A In the past, when he and his former mayor brother Rob travelled as members of Toronto city council, they would pay their own way and not bill taxpayers.


Move over gravy train, the slogan Rob Ford made famous about government spending of taxpayers’ money, and meet the gravy plane.

And, former Toronto mayor John Tory told Moore, “the premier hates to fly” and “get in planes,” and there is no way this is something he wants for himself, but a decision has been made, it’s something the province needs during these difficult global times of 2026.

Whatever happens here, there should be a full accounting of not just the cost to buy this plane, but also how much it will cost to maintain it, staff it and secure it. There has been much criticism of late toward Prime Minister Mark Carney’s plane, as reported by the Sun’s Bryan Passifiume, costing taxpayers more than $500,000 for in-flight catering in the first year in office.

Does Ontario need this luxury item? Why can’t the roads be used in southern Ontario and a commercial or charter flight be utilized when the need arises to travel? Or just the prop airplanes the province already owns?

However, this is worked out, it’s only fair to say the plane should not be allowed to be used to deliver politicians into ridings for photo ops or to announce programs. And it should be made available to get medical patients from around the province to hospitals and other human needs – something Ford assured the Sun that will happen.

Air Ford One should not be used by any politician to boost their own political standing.

They should use a regular Ford with four tires for that.

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/2045161955556524524

WARMINGTON: They call it Air Ford One. Doug Ford defends purchasing 'private' plane

They are already calling the Ontario Premier's new "private" jet airplane purchase Air Ford One. Read more.

torontosun.com

 

[spaminator]

Get ready to say goodbye to the green roof of Parliament Hill's Peace Tower
New brown copper could take decades to turn green again.

Author of the article:Ben Andrews
Published Apr 16, 2026 • Last updated 15 hours ago • 2 minute read

A construction crane is seen working around the Peace Tower on Parliament Hill in January.
A construction crane is seen working around the Peace Tower on Parliament Hill in January. Photo by TONY CALDWELL /POSTMEDIA
Behind a shroud of scaffolding, more than half of the copper on Parliament Hill’s Centre Block roof has now been removed as part of the ongoing multi-billion-dollar rehabilitation project that will soon leave the iconic Peace Tower topped with an unfamiliar colour for years to come.


Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC), the federal department overseeing the project, says construction work on the roof is well underway.


In an email, PSPC spokesperson Michèle Larose said the Centre Block rehabilitation project was “in process” replacing the copper roof on Centre Block, including the central Peace Tower, though she did not say when work on the tower itself would begin.

“This new roof will take many years to oxidize and turn from brown to the green patina colour that is typically seen,” Larose said.

The rate at which copper develops its characteristic blue-green patina, a layer of corrosion due to oxidization, depends on local environmental conditions. It may take anywhere from five years to decades to form.

The government says the Centre Block rehabilitation is the “largest, most complex project to rehabilitate a heritage building ever in Canada.”

The work is being done to restore crumbling stonework, earthquake-proof the building, remove asbestos, replace outdated mechanical and electrical systems and build a new welcome centre.


Scaffolding rises around the peace tower.
Scaffolding rises around the Peace Tower. Photo by TONY CALDWELL /POSTMEDIA
Starting this summer, the Peace Tower will be covered in steel scaffolding and cloaked in a decorative wrap with images of the tower hidden underneath. The $4-million wrap is known as a trompe-l’œil, or trick of the eye, and is meant to mitigate negative effects on the local tourism industry.

As part of site preparation for the project, about 21,000 kilograms of copper will be removed so the roof can be rehabilitated and restored.

According to the government’s latest quarterly update, more than half of the total copper has already been removed and overall roof removal sits at about 30 per cent.

“That is equivalent to (16,021 kilograms) of copper available to be repurposed,” the update said.

Overall project cost and schedule are “progressing, but experiencing challenges,” according to the update.

As of March 13, spending on the project had reached $1.66 billion out of a total estimated cost of $4.5 billion to $5 billion.

Replacement of the roof, including the Peace Tower roof, will continue “over the next few years,” LaRose said. Overall construction is expected to be completed between 2030 and 2031.

January 1 to March 31 2026: Quarterly progress report update on the Centre Block project - Canada.ca

Quarterly progress report on the Centre Block project

canada.ca

About the Centre Block project - Canada.ca

The Centre Block is closed for renovations. This is the largest, most complex project to rehabilitate a heritage building ever in Canada.

canada.ca

Architecture - New Products

The copper industry is continuously researching methods and materials that will improve the architectural applications of various copper products and systems. The listing below contains the most recent developments in architectural copper products.

copper.org

Get ready to say goodbye to the Peace Tower's green roof

"Largest, most complex” rehabilitation project in Canadian history will soon leave iconic Peace Tower topped in unfamiliar colour.

torontosun.com