TORONTO — Ontario’s financial watchdog says it projects budget surpluses in the province for the foreseeable future.
A report today from the Financial Accountability Office of Ontario says strong revenue growth, even though it is projected to slow from its current pace, is set to outpace spending up to 2027-28.Sign up to receive daily headline news from Ottawa Citizen, a division of Postmedia Network Inc.By clicking on the sign up button you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. You may unsubscribe any time by clicking on the unsubscribe link at the bottom of our emails.
Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy announced last month that Ontario ended the last fiscal year with a $2.1-billion surplus, a far cry from the $33-billion deficit projected in the budget, thanks to inflation and a strong economy. The FAO also says that the government’s current spending plan contains $40 billion in funding shortfalls over six years, though it also contains $44 billion in unallocated contingency funds, which could be used to address those shortfalls.
Otherwise, the surpluses would slow the accumulation of net debt and would see the net-debt-to-GDP ratio decline to 31.5 per cent in 2027-28, the lowest since 2008-09.Share this article in your social network