It's budget day in N.L. — again
The Liberals are putting forward the exact same financial plan they released in April
The Liberals are sticking to the budget they released a day before calling the province's general election.
On Tuesday afternoon, the party reintroduced the same financial plan it presented back in April.
"The day the budget was announced we had people from other parties saying that it was an election budget," said Finance Minister Tom Osborne.
"Nothing could be further from the truth. I mean, this budget took months to put in place, it was months of work by very dedicated public servants."
Osborne said administration was methodical in terms of laying out the plan to see the province return to surplus in 2022-2023.
"I think it is important to show stability to our bond rating agencies, they have been very complimentary towards government in previous reports and in terms of the fiscal plan that we have laid out. We need to show them that we are going to be consistent."
Budget 2019
The Liberal budget for this fiscal year doesn't see any tax increases.
It nixes the tax on automobile insurance, promises affordable electricity rates and removes the deficit reduction levy in December.
Seventy-five hours of debate is required before a budget can be voted through. The opposition criticized government for not holding budget debate ahead of the election as, they said, the process lends itself to a fuller understanding of the province's financial situation.
The Liberals responded to that criticism by saying numbers were outlined in the budget so parties, and the public, could familiarize themselves with finances before the vote.
Budget 2019 puts the province at a $1.9-billion surplus because it counts revenue from a decades-long Atlantic Accord deal all at once.
Without the accord, the province would have had a $575-million deficit this year.
Campaign promise
The Liberals campaigned on Budget 2019, which essentially became the party's platform. Ball promised to push that exact plan through, if elected, but without a majority, there's no guarantee the budget will pass as is.
All three parties say they're committed to collaborating with each other.
PC Leader Ches Crosbie proposed some recommendations he would like to see in the budget and Osborne said he is absolutely willing to work with other parties as long as it is fiscally responsible.
"I want to work with him. Those ideas are not new ideas — they are good ideas, they are ideas that we as a caucus and a cabinet have talked about over the past three years. But we need to see from Mr. Crosbie where he feels we can recoup the money that is going to cost to put these ideas in place," said Osborne.
"That is what responsible government does."
Crosbie has said he likely won't attach a non-confidence amendment to the budget because he doesn't feel "in a mood to prolong debate."
Coffin said she feels the parties will be able to push forward on some common ground. But she hasn't decided which way her party will be voting on the budget — her members are going to listen through the debate first.
With files from Katie Breen and Meg Roberts