Fraser Institute finds per-person debt increased by 35.5% since 2015 under Trudeau

The Canadian Press / Lars Hagberg

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“Prime Minister Trudeau’s government has increased per-person debt by 35.3 per cent since 2015, the third highest amount since World War II,” a new study found.

Indeed, through a study conducted by researchers Jake Fuss and Evin Ryan, the Fraser Institute was able to analyze the debt legacies of each prime minister since Confederation. 

As they put it, “[we] examine the percentage change in inflation adjusted gross debt per person during the tenures of various prime ministers.”

“Debt legacies for the prime ministers are measured by calculating the change in debt during their respective tenures,” the institute says. “The first step in the analysis is to allot the period(s) of tenure for each prime minister.”

The study takes into fair consideration the economic and social challenges faced by each prime minister.

Despite this, they found that “according to the study, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government is projected to increase per-person federal debt by more than 35 per cent since taking office in late 2015, increasing federal debt per Canadian from $34,791 to $47,070 (inflation adjusted).”

“Moreover, federal debt per Canadian has increased by over 25 per cent from before COVID in 2019 until 2022”

The graph above, included in the study, demonstrates that when Justin Trudeau entered office, the Federal Gross Debt was slightly above $1.2B. As of today, it is slightly above $1.8B. An increase of over 6 billion dollars. 

To conclude the study, the researchers state the following:

“Federal debt per person has changed remarkably and in different ways during the tenures of each Canadian prime minister from 1870 to 2022. Sir John Abbott and Sir Mackenzie Bowell, Canada’s third and fifth prime ministers respectively, are the only prime ministers other than Justin Trudeau to have increased federal per-person debt without experiencing a global conflict or an economic downturn. In 2022, federal per-person debt is projected to be $47,070, the third highest amount in Canadian history. This is more than 25 percent higher than per person debt before COVID in 2019. During Justin Trudeau’s tenure, federal per-person debt increased by 35.3 percent between 2015 and 2022.”