(LNN)

By LNN Staff

Politics

Lethbridge mayor and MP react to proposed federal budget

Nov 5, 2025 | 4:04 PM

Lethbridge Mayor Blaine Hyggen says it will take some time to review the entire scope of the proposed 2025 Federal Budget, including discussions with the municipality’s Chief Financial Officer & Treasurer, to see the full impact.

In a statement, Hyggen says as always, city council will continue to advocate for the supports residents need in the city to best serve citizens.

“We need to understand the details of the Build Community Strong Fund, but it is encouraging to see national commitments of $115 billion in infrastructure and $25 billion in homebuilding,” says Hyggen. “We are hopeful that Lethbridge will be seriously considered for a fair share of these funding allotments. Our city council and administration will look forward to working with the federal government in the coming weeks and months to look at all avenues that may be available.”

Meantime, Rachael Thomas, Member of Parliament for Lethbridge, released a statement Wednesday, saying the federal government unveiled more broken promises and fiscal damage.

“The Liberals are spending way beyond Canada’s means,” states Thomas. “Each dollar the Liberal government spends comes out of the pocket of Canadian workers, families, and seniors. A decade of reckless spending has already taken a toll on Canadians, even in our own community of Lethbridge. Food bank usage in Lethbridge is up 45.4 per cent among adults and 150 per cent among children.”

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“Meanwhile,” continued Thomas. “the Prime Minister is raising the industrial carbon tax on farm equipment and fertilizer, which drives up food costs; on steel, concrete, and other materials essential for building homes resulting in higher taxes on housing.”

Prime Minister Mark Carney is defending his federal budget from critics who question the scale of investment.

The budget tabled in the House of Commons Tuesday includes nearly 90-billion-dollars in net new spending over five years.

Carney says now is not the time to be cautious because fortune favours the bold and instead, it’s time to get big things done for Canadians.

He claims measures in the budget would help the country meet a lofty goal of attracting one-trillion-dollars in total investment over the next five years — more than offsetting the disruption from U-S tariffs.

(With files from The Canadian Press)