OTTAWA
Prime Minister Mark Carney's second federal budget will include new affordability measures, business tax incentives and investments in infrastructure, defence and culture, a senior government source says.
The budget, set to be unveiled on Thursday, will also provide more details on previous announcements, such as plans for private investment in Canada's four biggest airports, according to the official.
"The budget has three pillars," said the official, who is familiar with the budget but is not authorized to speak publicly about it. "Investing in the people, the identity and the growth of Canada."
Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne unveiled the title and cover of the budget, "Masters of Our Destiny" in English and "Maîtres Chez Nous" in French, on social media last week.
The official said the budget outlines a fiscal plan aligned to Carney's priorities as Canada continues to operate under a trade war with the United States and global economic uncertainty.
"Investment in our identity and sovereignty includes investing in economic growth, diversification, creating resilience in the economy, but also investing in defence, culture and infrastructure," the official said.
They said the budget is not a reaction to the recent U.S. midterm elections and is "not about the U.S."
"Essentially the impact of the U.S.-Canada trade dispute is already kind of baked in," said Theo Argitis, senior vice-president of policy for the Business Council of Canada.
Business groups have high hopes their pre-budget submissions have resonated with finance officials.
Dan Kelly, president and CEO of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, said he is optimistic that rumours of a small-business focus are true.
"We have had more quarters with more businesses leaving their business altogether than new ones starting up. And that almost never happens," he said. "If we want to have more large companies, it starts with having more small companies."
Kelly said there have been numerous supports for big business through the tariff war with the U.S., and now it is his members' turn.
"I don't hold Ottawa to account for the trade war ... but I do hold Ottawa accountable for the fact that while they're suggesting that they're going to provide support to small businesses, that they don’t actually do it," he said.
The CFIB wants the government to reduce the small business corporate tax rate from nine per cent to six per cent and raise the threshold of income that applies under the lower rate from $500,000 to $700,000.
The Council of Canadian Innovators is pushing for a qualified small business tax incentive similar to what is available in the U.S., by which founders and investors of Canadian firms can roll over any capital gains they earn into new investments in Canadian companies.
"How we're evaluating this budget is how is the government making Canada a better place, not only to do business but also to grow your business here and stay Canadian," Daniel Perry, CCI's director of federal affairs, said.
The CCI is also proposing a new startup visa program to bring in foreign entrepreneurial talent, to replace the program paused by the government.
The senior government source said the budget will include new affordability measures to help vulnerable Canadians.
"We're creating immediate and more medium-term programs to bridge people through this very uncertain time," they said.
The official would not specify if there would also be extensions of measures already in place, such as the temporary elimination of the excise tax on fuel.
"The government needs to recognize the pocketbook issues that Canadians are really experiencing today," said Sean Strickland, executive director of Canada's Building Trades Unions.
The budget will also provide an update on the Canada Strong Fund, the country's first national sovereign wealth fund that Carney announced last April.
Canadians can expect more details on how the government will meet its promise to balance the operational budget a year early.
e2gold.ca reported in November that Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne said the budget will simplify the tax code for small businesses.
This story was written by the e2gold.ca newsroom from reporting by CBC News and Global News. Quotes are checked word for word against that reporting.