Monday InsightsIssue 3 · Nov. 9, 2026
Ottawa’s budget, Alberta’s new map and B.C.’s final count
Last week, Ottawa tabled its budget, Alberta moved to adopt a new 91-riding map, B.C. set its swearing-in and started its final count, and 53 new bills were tabled across Canada. Here’s what happened and what it means for you.
The week in four numbers
01Ottawa
What Budget 2026 does
Budget 2026Federal deficit, $ billions
Deficits stay above $50 billion
Budget 2026, Annex 1, Table A1.8 · Nov. 5
JobsLabour Force Survey, October
Unemployment by province
Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey, October 2026 · Nov. 6. Canada: 6.7 per cent, up from 6.5.
PollAbacus Data, Oct. 30 to Nov. 4
Federal vote intention, before the budget
Abacus Data, online survey of 1,926 adults, Oct. 30 to Nov. 4 · published Nov. 8. Decided voters. Change from Oct. 21: Liberal down 3, Conservative up 2, Bloc up 2, People’s Party up 1.
What happened. On Thursday, Nov. 5, Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne tabled Budget 2026. It projects a $62.3 billion deficit this year and more than $50 billion in each of the next four years. BNN Bloomberg tallies $142.1 billion in new measures over five years. Federal debt stays at about 40 per cent of GDP. Interest on the debt costs $60.2 billion this year, more than the $57.4 billion Ottawa sends provinces through the Canada Health Transfer.
Jobs. The day after the budget, Statistics Canada reported Canada lost 4,700 jobs in October, the third straight monthly drop. The unemployment rate rose to 6.7 per cent from 6.5, and youth unemployment to 13.7 per cent. Alberta lost 24,000 jobs, the most of any province, and its rate rose to 7.3 per cent from 6.4.
Before the budget. An Abacus Data online survey of 1,926 adults, done Oct. 30 to Nov. 4, before the budget was tabled, put the Liberals at 45 per cent among decided voters, the Conservatives at 34, the NDP at 9, the Bloc Québécois at 8, the Greens at 3 and the People’s Party at 2. The Liberals were down three points from Oct. 21 and the Conservatives up two. In Alberta, the Conservatives led 56 to 30. Fifty-seven per cent approved of the federal government, and 29 per cent approved of its handling of the cost of living, down from 38 per cent in September. Abacus says a comparable probability sample would have a margin of error of plus or minus 2.2 points, 19 times out of 20.
For households. A one-time 50 per cent increase to the grocery benefit for 2026-27, worth up to $339 for a single person and $679 for a couple with two children, paid early in 2027. A new refundable caregiver credit of up to $1,260, and heat pump rebates for up to 820,000 households.
For provinces and cities. $44.7 billion over 11 years for housing, with a goal of ending chronic homelessness within 10 years; $1.2 billion in 2027-28 for mental health and home care agreements; $11.2 billion over four years, starting in 2027-28, to end homelessness; and $1.5 billion over nine years from the Build Communities Strong Fund for recreation centres and ice rinks. Ottawa will fully fund construction of the Mackenzie Valley Highway in the N.W.T. For the North, $1.6 billion over 10 years from 2027-28 for energy reliability, which the budget says will support Yukon’s Mayo Hydro Facility and the Atlin Hydro Expansion.
For business and defence. A “Productivity Mega Deduction” cuts the tax rate on new investment to 6.4 per cent from 13 per cent. Defence spending stays on track for 4 per cent of GDP this decade.
Reaction. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre called it “a costly credit card budget that Canadians can’t afford” and said Conservatives will vote no. He moved an amendment asking the House to reject the budget. NDP Leader Avi Lewis called the budget “Christmas come early for CEOs, foreign investors and arms dealers.” Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet said his party will vote against it and called its changes to health transfers “unacceptable,” Actualité politique du Québec reports. Quebec’s government also criticized the budget, CBC News reports. Alberta Finance Minister Jason Nixon said the province is still reviewing it, and that Ottawa is moving toward Alberta’s push for a stronger economy and a more competitive energy sector. Prime Minister Mark Carney said it will help deliver “one of the key determinants of this country’s sovereignty.”
What’s next. MPs debate the budget motion for four days, then vote. It’s a confidence vote (see the word of the week), and the government has a majority. The House is off this week and returns Nov. 16.
02Alberta
A new map for 91 ridings
AlbertaSeats in the legislature
From 87 ridings to 91
Lethbridge: two city ridings would become four, three of them reaching into rural areas.
Independent Advisory Panel on Electoral Boundaries report · Lethbridge Herald, Nov. 3
AlbertaProposed map, Calgary
Calgary’s ridings run large
LiveWire Calgary, from the advisory panel report · Nov. 4. Calgary: 28 ridings, up from 26. Alberta average implied by LiveWire’s figures.
What happened. On Monday, Nov. 2, the legislature released the proposed map from Alberta’s independent advisory panel on electoral boundaries, chaired by former judge Brian O’Ferrall. It would raise the number of ridings to 91 from 87. All five members agreed to restore two rural ridings, Lac Ste. Anne and Rocky Mountain House-Sundre. A three-member majority also proposes moving parts of Bearspaw and Springbank into west Calgary ridings, splitting Lethbridge into four ridings, and a new Banff-Canmore-Diamond Valley riding.
The disagreement. The two members appointed by the NDP wrote a minority opinion opposing the Calgary, Lethbridge and Banff changes, arguing they go beyond the panel’s mandate. The report says the proposals “are not unconstitutional.”
This week. On Wednesday, Justice Minister Mickey Amery tabled a motion asking MLAs to accept the map and calling for a bill to set the new boundaries, with a second motion limiting debate to one hour. MLAs voted 45 to 33 to adjourn that debate. Amery said “nobody from the government had any input.” NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi said the motion “strikes a knife into the heart of Alberta’s democracy.”
In Calgary. Mayor Jeromy Farkas said the proposed map would “severely shortchange Calgarians.” Calgary would get 28 ridings, up from 26, but its average riding would have 56,726 people, 5.6 per cent above the provincial average, and Calgary-McKenzie, at 62,772, would be Alberta’s most populous riding, LiveWire Calgary reports. Farkas and the panel’s two dissenting members say Calgary should have about one and a half more ridings. He asked Calgarians to contact their MLAs.
Why it matters. Ridings decide how many MLAs each region elects on Oct. 18, 2027. Chief Electoral Officer Gordon McClure has told MLAs that Elections Alberta lacks the time to put new boundaries in place and asked them to use the current map or delay the vote. Amery has rejected that.
What’s next. MLAs are on a constituency week and return Nov. 16. The motion needs its hour of debate, then a bill must pass to change the map.
03British Columbia
Swearing-in set for Nov. 19
Final countNov. 6 to 10
The closest ridings
Votes between first and second place on Sunday, with the final count under way. NDP leads in Ladysmith-Oceanside; Conservatives lead in the other three. Not final until the count ends.
BC Ballot, from Elections BC results · Nov. 8
Update. Last week we reported that no swearing-in date had been set. On Nov. 2, Premier-designate Lorne Doerkson set it: MLAs are sworn in Thursday, Nov. 19, and his cabinet on Friday, Nov. 20.
Chief of staff. Doerkson named Dimitri Pantazopoulos chief of staff in the incoming Premier’s Office. His office says Pantazopoulos was principal secretary to Premier Christy Clark and has worked as a pollster and strategist on federal and provincial campaigns. Doerkson said, “Dimitri has spent years working for this province.”
The final count. Elections BC began counting mail-in and absentee ballots on Friday and expects results by Tuesday, Nov. 10. The margins are moving. By Sunday, Conservative David Xie led the NDP’s Paul Choi in Burnaby South-Metrotown by 64 votes. In Ladysmith-Oceanside, the NDP’s Stephanie Higginson led by 50, and in Kelowna Centre, Conservative Kristina Loewen led by 43, down from 132. Recounts are scheduled in Ladysmith-Oceanside and Burnaby South-Metrotown. Seats are only declared once the count ends. (BC Ballot, from Elections BC results)
What’s next. David Eby stays premier until Nov. 19.
04Legislatures
53 new bills, and a week off
Most legislatures break for Remembrance Day this week. Before they did, they tabled 53 bills.
TabledNov. 2 to 6
Bills to know this week
- AlbertaBill 39: involuntary addiction treatment and private clinics
- AlbertaBill 38: tuition caps and free expression on campus
- OntarioBill 143, budget measures: passed second reading 66-35
- Sask.Bill 71: more oversight of personal care homes
- N.B.Bill 14: property tax reform
- N.L.Bill 29: a new Cities Act
- N.W.T.Bill 62: residential school remains
Legislature records · Churchill’s legislation trackers · Nov. 6
Alberta. Bill 39 changes the Compassionate Intervention Act, which allows involuntary addiction treatment as a last resort, before it starts in spring 2027. It also makes private clinics pay lab costs for uninsured services. Mental Health and Addiction Minister Rick Wilson said it means “Albertans with the most severe addiction can receive safe, coordinated, and consistent treatment.” Bill 38 would let the minister cap tuition from 2027-28 and set free-expression standards on campus.
Ontario. Bill 143, which carries the fall economic statement, passed second reading on Thursday, 66 to 35, after a vote to limit debate. It goes to the finance committee.
Prince Edward Island. MLAs returned on Tuesday to the restored Province House, the first sitting there in 12 years, and the government tabled 20 bills the same day.
Northwest Territories. Bill 62 would set rules for identifying and returning the remains of children who died at residential schools. It passed second reading on Thursday.
05Big cities
Budget season, and new councils
EdmontonProposed tax-supported increase
Edmonton’s yearly increase
City of Edmonton, 2027-2030 Budget Facts · Nov. 2
Edmonton. The city’s proposed four-year budget, released Nov. 2, would raise the tax-supported operating budget 4.9 per cent in 2027. For a home assessed at $492,500, that’s about $17.64 a month more, the city estimates. Council hears it Nov. 23. On the federal budget, Mayor Andrew Knack said “there’s some good things in it” but had hoped for money for the High Level and Low Level bridge repairs, the Edmonton Journal reports.
Regina and Calgary. Regina’s proposed 2027 budget, released Thursday, has a 5.81 per cent property tax increase, CBC News reports. Calgary’s four-year budget comes Tuesday, Nov. 10.
New councils. Surrey’s council holds its first meeting tonight and will vote on all 15 of its election commitments, the city says. Winnipeg’s council was sworn in Nov. 3, and five Ontario councils take office Sunday.
Ottawa’s budget and cities. The Federation of Canadian Municipalities welcomed the budget’s $11.2 billion over four years to end homelessness. FCM president Tim Tierney said “the test now will be turning that commitment into safe homes and lasting support for people.”
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Big Cities Insights covers Canada’s 15 biggest city councils in plain English. This week: Edmonton’s budget, Surrey’s 15 motions and what Ottawa’s budget sends cities. New every week on our Insights page.
Read it free06Across Canada
Where every legislature stands this week
Each province and territory has its own legislature. Here’s what each one is doing, from west to east and then north.
Churchill’s legislation trackers and legislature calendars, checked Nov. 6, 2026
Every bill tabled last week, Nov. 2 to 6, government and members’ bills, and where each one stands. 53 in all.
New billsNov. 2 to 6
53 bills tabled across Canada in one week
Government billsMembers’ bills
Where they stand
Third reading: 0In committee: 10Second reading: 5First reading: 38
Each legislature’s bill lists and LEGISinfo · checked Nov. 6
Parliament: Budget 2026 was tabled Thursday (story 1). The Senate received one government bill on Tuesday, S-8, on financial crimes and drug trafficking, and MPs debated Bill C-41, on medical assistance in dying, at second reading. The House doesn’t sit Nov. 9 to 13 and returns Monday, Nov. 16.
- Bill S-8Combatting Financial Crimes and Drug Trafficking ActFirst reading · Senate
British Columbia: Elections BC’s final count runs to Tuesday, Nov. 10. MLAs are sworn in Nov. 19 and the cabinet Nov. 20 (story 3).
Alberta: Two government bills came last week: Bill 38, on tuition caps and free expression on campus, and Bill 39, on involuntary addiction treatment and private clinics (story 4). Bill 33, on public-sector hiring and fake intimate images, passed third reading Thursday. The government also moved to adopt the new electoral map (story 2). MLAs are on a constituency week and return Nov. 16. Elections Alberta projects the Oct. 19 referendum cost $84.3 million. A legislature committee approved its extra budget request of $59.6 million for 2026-27, including $9 million to prepare for the 2027 election. Alberta also moved to permanent daylight time, called Alberta Time, on Nov. 1, so clocks no longer change in the fall or spring. On Friday, Finance Minister Jason Nixon said Statistics Canada figures show Alberta’s real GDP grew 3.3 per cent in 2025, against 1.9 per cent nationally. The same day, Statistics Canada reported Alberta lost 24,000 jobs in October, the most of any province, and its unemployment rate rose to 7.3 per cent from 6.4.
- Bill 38Advanced Education Statutes Amendment Act, 2026Second reading
- Bill 39Health Statutes Amendment Act, 2026 (No. 2)First reading
Saskatchewan: Eight government bills were introduced, Bills 65 to 72, including tougher rules for personal care homes and changes to the human trafficking law, along with five opposition members’ bills, including a Rent Control Act. MLAs return Monday, Nov. 9.
- Bill 65The Protection From Human Trafficking Amendment Act, 2026First reading
- Bill 66The Pooled Registered Pension Plans (Saskatchewan) Amendment Act, 2026First reading
- Bill 67The Coroners Amendment Act, 2026First reading
- Bill 68The Enforcement of Maintenance Orders Amendment Act, 2026First reading
- Bill 69The Legal Profession Amendment Act, 2026First reading
- Bill 70The Legal Profession Consequential Amendment Act, 2026First reading
- Bill 71The Personal Care Homes (Safer Homes for Seniors) Amendment Act, 2026First reading
- Bill 72The Opioid Damages Amendment Act, 2026First reading
- Bill 632Rent Control Act, 2026First reading · Member’s bill
- Bill 633Provincial Sales Tax Amendment Act, 2026First reading · Member’s bill
- Bill 634Saskatchewan Medical Care Insurance (Banning Private Fees) Amendment ActFirst reading · Member’s bill
- Bill 635Provincial Health Authority (Banning Parking Fees for Cancer Patients) Amendment ActFirst reading · Member’s bill
- Bill 636Consumer Protection and Business Practices (Banning Unfair A.I. Pricing) Amendment ActFirst reading · Member’s bill
Manitoba: The House isn’t sitting. The 4th Session opens Tuesday, Nov. 17.
Ontario: Bill 143, which carries the fall economic statement, passed second reading Thursday, 66 to 35, after a vote to limit debate, and went to committee. Third reading debate began on Bill 109, on protecting farmland. Three members’ bills were introduced. MPPs return Nov. 16.
- Bill 145Optometry Amendment Act, 2026First reading · Member’s bill
- Bill 146Moratorium on Artificial Intelligence Data Centres Act, 2026First reading · Member’s bill
- Bill 147Benji’s Law (Ensuring Anaphylaxis, Asthma and Epilepsy Friendly Overnight Camps), 2026First reading · Member’s bill
Quebec: The new National Assembly’s first sitting has moved to Tuesday, Dec. 1, from Nov. 17. Premier Paul St-Pierre Plamondon delayed the opening, CTV News reports.
New Brunswick: Four government bills were introduced, including property tax reform and protections for young people from misleading online business practices. Four earlier bills passed committee on Wednesday. The House doesn’t sit Nov. 9 to 13.
- Bill 11Addiction Treatment Services Licensing ActSecond reading
- Bill 12An Act Respecting Young Persons, Digital Markets and Technology UseFirst reading
- Bill 13An Act to Amend the Université de Moncton ActIn committee
- Bill 14An Act Respecting Property Tax Reform MeasuresFirst reading
Nova Scotia: The House isn’t sitting, and no return date has been announced.
Prince Edward Island: The fall sitting opened Tuesday in the restored Province House, the first sitting there in 12 years. Twenty government bills were introduced that day, and eight are already through committee. MLAs sit Tuesday to Friday this week.
- Bill 28An Act to Amend the Farm Registration and Farm Organizations Funding ActIn committee
- Bill 29An Act to Amend the Education ActFirst reading
- Bill 30Public Libraries ActFirst reading
- Bill 31An Act to Amend the Gasoline Tax ActIn committee
- Bill 32An Act to Amend the Combative Sport Commissioner ActIn committee
- Bill 33An Act to Amend the Denturists ActFirst reading
- Bill 34An Act to Amend the Registered Health Professions ActFirst reading
- Bill 36An Act to Amend the Consumer Reporting ActFirst reading
- Bill 37Coroners ActIn committee
- Bill 38Correctional Services ActIn committee
- Bill 39Entry and Search Warrant Procedures Amendment ActIn committee
- Bill 40Good Samaritan ActIn committee
- Bill 41Government Reorganization Act (No. 2)In committee
- Bill 42An Act to Amend the Securities ActFirst reading
- Bill 44An Act to Amend the Liquor Control ActFirst reading
- Bill 45An Act to Amend the Procurement of Goods ActFirst reading
- Bill 48Technical Safety Omnibus ActFirst reading
- Bill 50An Act to Amend the Municipal Government ActFirst reading
- Bill 51Performance-based Regulation Review ActFirst reading
- Bill 52Electricity Consumer Advocate ActFirst reading
Newfoundland and Labrador: Six bills were introduced, including a new Cities Act. Bill 26, on fair registration practices, is waiting for royal assent.
- Bill 29Cities ActFirst reading
- Bill 30Registered Professional Planners ActIn committee
- Bill 31Workplace Health, Safety and Compensation (Amendment) Act, 2022 No. 2Second reading
- Bill 32Workplace Health, Safety and Compensation (Amendment) Act, 2022 No. 3First reading
- Bill 33Cannabis Control (Amendment) ActFirst reading
- Bill 34Evidence (Amendment) ActFirst reading
Yukon: Four bills got royal assent last week, Premier Currie Dixon said, including Bill 6, which gives wildland firefighters the same presumptive cancer coverage as other firefighters, and Bill 8, the rental housing changes. Budget 2026 names two Yukon power projects for northern energy money and lists the Whitehorse Power Centres under its community fund. The sitting ends Nov. 26 at the latest.
Northwest Territories: Four bills were introduced. Bill 62, on identifying and returning the remains of children who died at residential schools, passed second reading Thursday. The Speaker ruled Bill 63, on electoral boundaries, out of order and removed it from the order paper. Jolene Saturnino was appointed clerk Friday.
- Bill 61Public Service Labour Relations ActSecond reading
- Bill 62Residential School Remains Identification and Repatriation ActSecond reading
- Bill 63Electoral Boundaries Reform ActFirst reading
- Bill 66An Act to Amend the Motor Vehicle Act, No. 2 (Scooters and Seatbelts)First reading
Nunavut: The fall sitting ended Thursday, Nov. 5. Seven bills received assent, including the 2027-28 capital budget. No more sittings are scheduled this year.
Word of the week
Ways and means motion
The motion a finance minister tables with the budget. It asks MPs to approve the government’s overall budget plan, and the vote on it is a confidence vote: if the government loses, it usually falls.
Days of debateThe House debates Budget 2026, tabled as ways and means motion No. 12, for four days before the vote.
House of Commons Standing Orders · The Hub, Nov. 5
Dates to watch
What’s coming up
- Remembrance DayMost legislatures are on a break this week
- Five Ontario councils take officeToronto, Ottawa, Mississauga, Brampton, Hamilton
- Three legislatures returnHouse of Commons, Alberta and Ontario
- Manitoba opens a new sessionThe 4th Session of the 43rd Legislature
- B.C.’s new MLAs are sworn inThe cabinet is sworn in Friday, Nov. 20
- Quebec’s National Assembly meetsMoved from Nov. 17
- Six federal byelectionsThree in Quebec, two in Ontario, one in Saskatchewan
Further out
- Alberta’s next general electionSet by law for the third Monday in October
Legislature calendars · Premier-designate’s office · CTV News · Elections Canada
Public sources only. No predictions.
Every party is reported the same way. Claims are attributed to the people who make them.
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Sources. Ottawa: Budget 2026, chapters 3 and 4 and Annex 1, Tables A1.6 and A1.8, and Budget 2026 Key Measures (budget.canada.ca, Nov. 5); BNN Bloomberg (Nov. 5); The Canadian Press via paNOW (Nov. 5); The Canadian Press QuickQuotes (Nov. 5); Actualité politique du Québec (Bloc, Nov. 6); Conservative Party of Canada, Poilievre’s budget speech (Nov. 5); CBC News (Quebec government); The Hub, “Parliament Today” (Nov. 5 and 6); Parliamentary Budget Officer, Economic and Fiscal Outlook (October 2026); House of Commons sitting calendar. Alberta: Independent Advisory Panel on Electoral Boundaries, Report to the Legislative Assembly (Oct. 2026); Lethbridge Herald (Nov. 3); Global News (Nov. 2); The Canadian Press via Calgary Journal (Nov. 2) and via Yahoo News (Nov. 4); Elections Alberta letter to MLAs, as reported Nov. 1; Legislative Assembly of Alberta sessional calendar. B.C.: Daily Hive (Nov. 2); Victoria News (Nov. 2); premier-designate’s news release (Nov. 2); BC Ballot, from Elections BC results (Nov. 8). Legislatures: The Canadian Press via Today in BC and CTV Edmonton (Alberta Bill 39, Nov. 4); Elections Alberta news release (referendum cost, Nov. 6); Government of Alberta (Bill 38; Alberta Time, Oct. 30; Minister Nixon’s statements on the federal budget, Nov. 5, and 2025 GDP, Nov. 6); Legislative Assembly of Ontario Votes and Proceedings (Nov. 2 to 5); Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan list of bills (Nov. 5); CTV News (Quebec, Nov. 4; New Brunswick, Nov. 3); legislature calendars for New Brunswick and P.E.I. Big cities: City of Edmonton, 2027-2030 Budget Facts (Nov. 2); CBC News (Regina, Nov. 5); City of Surrey (Nov. 3); Global News (Winnipeg, Nov. 3); Federation of Canadian Municipalities news release (Nov. 5). Across Canada and bills tabled: Churchill’s legislation trackers, from each legislature’s official records (bill status reports, order papers, Hansard and Minutes), checked Nov. 6. Jobs: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey, October 2026 (Nov. 6). Calgary and the boundaries: LiveWire Calgary (Darren Krause, Nov. 4). Poll: Abacus Data national survey, Oct. 30 to Nov. 4, 2026, n=1,926 online (published Nov. 8). Edmonton and the federal budget: Edmonton Journal (Nov. 6). Yukon: Premier Currie Dixon, Yukon Party newsletter (assent of Bills 6, 8, 13 and 205, week of Nov. 2); Budget 2026 (Mayo, Atlin and Whitehorse Power Centres); CBC North (Nov. 6).
Churchill Strategy has worked with conservative parties in Alberta, Saskatchewan and federally, and with a campaign in Alberta’s 2026 referendum. Monday Insights reports results; it does not take sides.
