Poilievre sets his budget terms: cut the federal taxes on diesel, suspend the GST on fuel, and hold Carney to his debt promise

By The Canadian Chronicle · Monday, November 2, 2026

Politics · Federal · The Canadian Chronicle

Published Monday, November 2, 2026 · 3 min read

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has set out his demands ahead of the federal budget on Thursday, November 5, in a letter to Prime Minister Mark Carney. The list leads with fuel taxes, and it is aimed at the cost of moving goods and getting to work.

The fuel demands

Poilievre is pushing the government to eliminate all federal taxes on diesel until Canada Day. Diesel moves the trucks that stock grocery shelves, and the letter argues the tax lands in the price of food and everyday goods.

The letter also calls for suspending the GST on fuel until summer. It calls for permanently scrapping the fuel standard tax. Both measures are presented as direct relief for Canadians buying groceries or Christmas gifts in the months ahead.

Spending and the fiscal anchor

Beyond fuel, the letter calls on the Liberal government to cut wasteful and inflationary spending. It also calls on Carney to fulfil his promises to reduce both the debt-to-GDP ratio and the deficit-to-GDP ratio.

Poilievre says keeping his word on the debt and deficit as a share of the economy is the bare minimum Carney can do. That framing puts the budget's own fiscal anchor, not its new announcements, at the centre of budget day.

What the budget watchdog projects

The Parliamentary Budget Officer has predicted the government will not meet its fiscal anchor of a declining deficit-to-GDP ratio. The office expects the measure to rise in 2027-28 and in 2029-30 instead.

The PBO projects a deficit of $63.3 billion in 2026-27. It projects the deficit peaking at $70.2 billion in 2027-28. Those are the numbers the Chronicle has carried in its budget preview, and they are unchanged in this story.

Poilievre says Carney's government has the biggest deficit ever outside the COVID-19 pandemic. He also says it has the highest spending as a share of GDP since the 1990s debt crisis. Both claims are his, made in the letter, and the budget on Thursday will test them against the government's own tables.

What Ottawa says

Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne has said the budget will outline the next steps in the government's plan to build a stronger, more resilient and more affordable Canada. The budget is titled "Masters of Our Destiny."

Thursday's document will show whether any of the fuel demands made it in. It will also show the government's own deficit track beside the PBO's $63.3 billion projection for 2026-27 and $70.2 billion peak in 2027-28.

The Record

Carney's promise to reduce the debt-to-GDP and deficit-to-GDP ratios is a checkable commitment. The Chronicle records it here, ahead of the budget: said before budget day, tested against the budget's own fiscal tables on November 5, and checked again against the PBO's next outlook.