Evidence is mounting that Canada’s economy may already be in an outright recession. Recent data on investment, exports, building permits and retail sales all paint a gloomy picture, and Friday’s jobs numbers (the private sector shed 49,000 jobs in June, partly offset by public sector hiring) added to the pessimism, NewsNow reported. Through it all, however, federal Conservative leaders return again and again to their favored touchstone: never mind the economy, we balanced the budget. And that’s what really matters. Indeed, they go farther: not only should deficit elimination still be the top priority–even in a weak economy. More than that, the mere act of balancing the budget will itself spur economic recovery. Finance Minister Joe Oliver put it this way, in a recent interview with CBC Radio: “We have a solid fiscal situation, and that’s why we continue to believe we’re going to see solid economic growth this year.” The prospects of Canada experiencing anything remotely resembling “solid growth” this year are non-existent.
