Last month the federal debt hit double what was owed when Justin Trudeau came to power. Young Canadians will be paying as long as they live

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By Franco Terrazzano

Pop the champagne! It’s now official. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has doubled the federal debt. It took nearly two dozen prime ministers and a century and a half for the federal government to rack up $616 billion in debt, which is where the total stood before Trudeau’s first year in office. But less than a decade later, on Aug. 30 of this year, the debt has officially doubled to $1.232 trillion. That’s according to calculations done by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation based on annual debt increases outlined in the government’s latest budget.

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The Trudeau government’s debt binge has had, and will continue to have, a material impact on Canadians’ lives.

We all want to leave our kids and grandkids a bright financial future. But a baby born today is already on the hook for about $30,000 in federal government debt. That debt may never fully be paid back: Canada’s federal debt has never been zero, though at times it has been very low. But even if it’s entirely rolled over and not a penny of it paid back, the debt will generate continuing interest payments, which means higher taxes for future generations unless future governments cut spending and run surpluses.

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