Budget 2026 does nothing to address affordability for younger generations

The Globe and Mail · Paul Kershaw · 2026-11-06 14:02 UTC

Individual grit can rarely compensate when earnings growth no longer keeps pace with housing costs

Branded cinematically as the Master of Our Destiny budget, Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government’s 2026 fiscal plan responds ambitiously to threats to Canadian sovereignty from the United States and an increasingly uncertain world.

But, like the government’s first budget, it does too little to address the affordability pressures Canadians face right now, especially younger generations. Seventy per cent of new spending on major cash transfers for individuals and nearly 80 per cent of new medical spending will go to seniors, who represent one-fifth of the population.

As a result, many young people increasingly feel their destiny is slipping out of their control. Individual grit can rarely compensate when earnings growth no longer keeps pace with housing costs. Mr. Carney’s 2026 budget does little to turn this around.

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