TORONTO — Ontario Premier Doug Ford says U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs have changed his approach to the province’s upcoming budget.
His government is set to table its 2025-26 budget Thursday, and Ford is indicating that it will contain a lot of infrastructure spending and measures to stimulate the economy.
Ford says in challenging economic times the two options are making cuts or putting money into building hospitals, roads and schools, and he prefers the latter option.
The province’s last major fiscal update, the fall economic statement, had eyed a balanced budget for 2026-27, but that came before the election of Trump and the implementation of tariffs.
Ford is now suggesting that while he still has a path to balance, it might be a bit different.
He and Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy have already made a few announcements of what will be in the budget, including an expansion to a manufacturing investment tax credit and removing tolls from the eastern, provincially owned portion of Highway 407.
