Thank you, Chair.
Thank you for being here today, Mr. Giroux.
This will be the first year that the overall budgetary spending detailed in the main estimates has risen above the $400-billion threshold. The government crossed the $300-billion threshold in the 2020-21 fiscal year.
Monsieur Giroux, your predecessor Mr. Page said that the current government has been “rightly criticized for running relatively loose fiscal policy” while resisting calls to implement stricter fiscal anchors. That's just a quote I will use relative to the budget next week.
You are quoted in one of my favourite publications, The Hill Times, as stating, “It makes sense from that perspective, but it's clearly an indication that the government is not shy about spending”. The Hill Times said your office released an analysis of the supplementary estimates on February 23, and you stated, “It's not every year that there are three supplementary estimates: A, B, and C.”
Do you want to expand on your comments in The Hill Times, Mr. Giroux?