Local MP sees federal budget won’t help average Oxford resident

Jeff Helsdon, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

The recently-passed federal budget won’t do a lot to assist the average resident in Oxford County, the local MP maintains.

MP Arpan Khanna says residents hoped the budget would help them get by.

“Affordability is the number one issue, and it is in Oxford County as well,” he said, saying he is hearing from residents saying they can’t afford rent, can’t buy food and can’t buy their children Christmas presents.

During debate on the budget, Khanna provided examples of the stories he has heard in the riding when speaking to the budget. Nicole, a mother of an autistic child, works two jobs for 70 hours per week and barely makes enough to pay her rent. Khanna said she may end up losing her home.

“Usually, when you sacrifice, you get some light at the end of the tunnel. We aren’t seeing that,” he said.

Shane, a trucker from Oxford, is impacted by tariffs, trade wars, and an industrial carbon tax. Combined with the rising cost of living, these pressures forced him to sell his belongings. Meanwhile, CAMI workers have been laid off.

Khanna said the budget may help big industry, but won’t help the average Canadian. He noted that spending on consultants has increased, as has overall spending and debt.

“Even the Independent Budgetary Officer has said he (Prime Minister Carney) is cooking the books and the debt is more than he says,” Khanna said, adding there has also been a warning that the country’s credit rating could go down if this continues.

For farmers, Khanna said the budget lacks relief from the industrial carbon tax and packaging laws, and there’s been no lifting of canola tariffs.

Speaking further on tariffs, Khanna questioned where the tariff relief the prime minister promised is.

“Who is making money? Brookfield is making massive profits, they are signing deals,” he asserted.

Pressed for more details, he said Brookfield signed a deal with the United Arab Emirates a few days before the prime minister was there. He also alleged that Brookfield signed a deal in the United States and will be a beneficiary of the European space deal.

“We have to hold this government accountable and ensure they are lining the pockets of Canadians, or are they lining the pockets of Brookfield?” he said.

The budget does have tax relief for those in the upper tax brackets.

“For the average Canadian who works their butts, who make the sacrifices, nothing,” Khanna said.

He also wants Oxford residents to note the prime minister’s absence in question period.

“The prime minister owes it to give us some transparency on these issues,” he said.

Municipal benefits

There have been times when past federal budgets have launched infrastructure programs in conjunction with the province, making dollars available to municipalities for large capital projects. That isn’t the case with the budget, or at least not in a manner that would benefit Tillsonburg.

Mayor Deb Gilvesy explained there is a provincial and territorial stream, worth $17.2 billion over the next decade, to support housing-related infrastructure.

“However, it comes with a significant caveat: municipalities must reduce or eliminate development charges to access these funds,” she said. ”Development charges are paid on new construction and are essential for funding the infrastructure and facilities required to support growth.”

In Tillsonburg, development charges funded the recent construction of three new pickleball courts, which Gilvesy said were in response to the community's expansion.

“These charges play an important role in responsible, growth-related community development,” she said. “It remains unclear how the budget’s conditions will impact existing plans or whether the new funding streams will be sufficient to support them without shifting additional financial pressure onto current ratepayers.”

Business input

The Ontario Chamber of Commerce provided mostly favourable comments on the budget’s investments and incentives to assist businesses, but also raised concerns about Canada's level of debt.

A complete analysis is available at https://occ.ca/rapidpolicy/2025-federal-budget/