What they said. What they meant.

Plain-language translations from the House of Commons.

Recent debates

8 latest topics

Oral Questions

Finance

A debate about the government's budget and spending priorities. The Conservatives accused the Liberals of excessive spending, inflationary policies, and devaluing workers' paychecks. The Liberals defended their economic record, saying Canada has the best fiscal position in the G7 and is making smart investments in housing, skills training, and protecting against U.S. tariffs.

Official Hansard ↗

Melissa Lantsman

Conservative
“The government's new budget spends too much and helps too little. The government borrowed another $37 billion, nearly $1,000 per Canadian, but Canadians still can't afford groceries or rent. They're forced to max out their own credit cards. Our food and housing inflation are the highest in the G7. The government now pays more on interest than it gives provinces for health care. This reckless spending must stop so families can afford to get by.”
Our translation 26% shorter

Melissa Lantsman

Conservative
“The government's new budget spends $37 billion more. That will make inflation worse and hurt the middle class with higher taxes. It's the government's fault. They should stop. I want the government to stop spending so much.”
Our translation 65% shorter

Hon. Andrew Scheer

Conservative
“The budget update shows the Liberals keep spending more. More costs, more debt, more taxes, just more of the same. The Prime Minister spends too much. He makes people pay more interest on debt than on health care. We got bad inflation, bad food prices, and the economy shrank. When will he stop spending so much so Canadians can afford to live?”
Our translation 46% shorter

Hon. Andrew Scheer

Conservative
“Workers are struggling because of inflation. The current government has made things worse and isn't doing anything to help. The Liberals need to stop spending so much money so Canadians can afford to live.”
Our translation 70% shorter

Pierre Paul-Hus

Conservative
“I say the Prime Minister claimed he was an economist. But he's no economist! He spends too much with no plan to balance the budget. A real economist would be disciplined, but he just delays hard choices. Why does he spend like a typical Liberal instead of the serious manager he promised?”
Our translation 53% shorter

Pierre Paul-Hus

Conservative
“The tariff situation is a disaster. Businesses are closing. The government's words sound nice, but they aren't fixing the real problem. The budget had more spending and no real solutions. Does the minister have anything useful to say?”
Our translation 68% shorter