Liberals increase spending

Budget watchdog says spending hits highest mark in at least six years

OTTAWA — Federal spending under the Liberal government kicked off the fiscal year by hitting its highest mark in at least six years, says a new analysis by the budget watchdog.

But some of the spending came from leftover commitments made by the previous Conservative government, the parliamentary budget officer’s report said Thursday.

Jean-Denis Frechette found that expenditures under the Trudeau government were 5.7 per cent higher — nearly $3.4 billion — in the first quarter of 2016-17, compared with the same period from the previous year.

Ottawa’s first-quarter spending reached $62.9 billion, while over the same threemonth period last year the government paid out about $59.5 billion, the analysis found.

A chunk of the increased spending, including an extra $1.22 billion for child-benefit cheques, came from the Liberal government’s Tory predecessor.

However, an additional $1.22 billion was the result of a 19 per cent Liberal increase in infrastructure-related spending. Frechette’s report said the hefty increase, which was categorized under grants and contributions to outside entities, was disbursed at an “unprecedented” rate compared to recent years.

The Liberals have committed $11.9 billion toward infrastructure spending over two years as a way to help lift the sluggish economy. It’s unclear, however, exactly how much federal infrastructure spending over the first three months of the fiscal year came from pledges made by the Liberals and how much of it was left over from older Conservative commitments.