Wednesday November 5, 2025 | VICTORIA, BC
by Mary P Brooke | Island Social Trends
NEWS SECTIONS: 45th PARLIAMENT of CANADA | CANADA-NATIONAL | FEDERAL NDP | BUDGET 2025
The NDP could make or break the success of the federal Liberal Budget 2025. In supporting the budget, the NDP would prevent the country heading into a Christmas-time election.
The minority Liberal government (now with 170 MPs) needs two more votes (from opposition party MPs) to vote in favour of the budget that was tabled yesterday. A budget vote is a confidence vote, which in this case needs at least 172 votes to be carried.
The Conservatives and the Bloc Québécois have said they will not support the Carney Liberal budget.
- Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre says the budget does not address affordability for Canada.
- “There’s nothing of what we did ask in the budget,” said Bloc Québécois Leader Blanchet.
- Green MP Elizabeth May says she could possibly support the budget with suitable amendments.
NDP for jobs, workers and families:
The NDP can use this scenario to speak up for the things that Canadians need such as jobs, health-care, and various social supports like child care, dental care and Pharmacare.
The budget does include ‘treats’ for the NDP such as new infrastructure or facilities in at least three NDP ridings. The budget also includes infrastructure funding for new hospital and clinic facilitates as well as retrofitting and maintaining existing facilities with things like air conditioning, air filtration (HVAC), and elevators.
NDP Leader and Finance Critic Don Davies released a statement yesterday after Budget 2025 was tabled in the House of Commons (see below). His statement clearly states how the NDP is standing up for workers and their families and the jobs that sustain households.
The NDP is not in favour of cutting public sector workers (about 40,000 workers over four years) and is critical of the government’s tax-break for US tech giants.
NDP finance critic Don Davies reacts to 2025 fall budget
November 4, 2025
“Canada is facing serious economic challenges. Unemployment is at its highest point in a decade, with young people particularly struggling to find jobs. Half of Canadians are living paycheque to paycheque. The cost of essentials, from feeding your family to paying your rent, continues to rise. And our economy is teetering on the edge of a recession, with US President Donald Trump intent on inflicting further damage.
In this context, this is a critical budget, and it comes at a critical time for our country.
New Democrats understand that we were sent to Ottawa to work for workers and their families. We have said Canadians need a budget that will invest to create good, family-sustaining union jobs; we have said Canadians need a budget that will help build millions of new affordable homes; we have said Canadians need a budget that invests in the programs and services that families rely on, notably our health care system.
And we have said that it is Prime Minister Mark Carney’s responsibility to put together a budget that invests in the needs of Canadians and that can pass in the House of Commons. If he is not able to do that, he bears ultimate responsibility.
Now that the budget is presented, we can begin the work of judging whether it meets the needs of Canadians.
It would appear on first review that there are measures in this budget that we welcome and indeed have advocated for. Measures such as providing additional infrastructure funding tied to union jobs, making an explicit commitment to co-op housing and referencing an East-West electricity grid.
Unfortunately, there are measures which we believe are a step in the wrong direction, including cutting public sector workers and the services they provide for Canadians, eliminating the Unused Housing Tax and reaffirming the government’s multi-billion dollar giveaway to US tech giants.
New Democrats will take the time to study the budget and talk to Canadians. We will have more to say in the coming days. ”
===== RELATED:
- Federal Budget 2025: investment for economic development & productivity (November 4, 2025)
- NEWS SECTIONS: 45th PARLIAMENT of CANADA | CANADA-NATIONAL | FEDERAL NDP | BUDGET 2025