OSPE Engineers Dissect Ontario Budget 2020

On November 5, Ontario’s Minister of Finance Rod Phillips released Ontario’s Action Plan: Protect, Support, Recover. The Ontario Society of Professional Engineers was invited as a key stakeholder to be part of the consultation process undertaken by the government prior to the release of the budget.

Ontario Budget 2020 builds on the foundation of three pillars:

• Protect — Urgent COVID‑19 Response
• Support — Support for People and Jobs
• Recover — Creating the Conditions for Growth

The Government of Ontario is projecting a deficit of $38.5 billion for 2020-21. Over the medium term, the government is forecasting deficits of $33.1 billion in 2021–22 and $28.2 billion in 2022–23.

While Ontario’s current levels of spending are critical to get through the pandemic, the government recognizes that this is unsustainable over the long term, thus the focus on building a foundation for recovery fuelled by economic growth. Acknowledging the continued uncertainty of the global pandemic, the government plans to table a path to balance in the 2021 Budget. Ontario’s 2020–21 net debt-to-GDP ratio is now forecast to be 47.0 per cent.

The government plans to update its debt burden reduction strategy in the 2021 Budget. Acknowledging the continued uncertainty of the global pandemic, the government plans to set a long-term target for the net debt-to-GDP ratio along with a path to balance in the 2021 Budget.

OSPE has identified the following areas of the Budget that are of most interest to our membership:

For more on OSPE’s views on the Province’s spending, Read our 2020 Pre-Budget Submission

 What did you think of Ontario Budget 2020? How will it impact you as an engineer and Ontarian?