Alberta’s credit rating is headed in the right direction, while the feds are threatened with a downgrade
On Monday, Moody's changed Alberta's credit rating outlook to positive from stable and affirmed the province's AA2 credit rating.
Moody's pointed to Alberta's balanced budget, debt repayment legislation and spending constraints as reasoning.
“The positive outlook reflects our view that if Alberta adheres to the governance controls as per its fiscal framework introduced in 2023, its debt and liquidity levels could be stronger than we currently project,” read the report.
The positive outlook for Premier Danielle Smith's United Conservative government starkly contrasts the half-a-dozen credit downgrades the province received between 2015 and 2019 under the previous NDP government and Premier Rachel Notley.
Justin Trudeau's Liberal federal government has taken a different approach than Alberta, receiving different reactions from credit rating agencies.
Trudeau's recent budget did not reduce spending, and the national debt has doubled in under a decade. The out-of-control debt and lack of responsible spending have prompted senior economists and multiple financial institutions to issue warnings that unless the Liberals acted immediately to rein themselves in, Canada would be faced with a credit downgrade.
This has resulted in the conditions that make life more unaffordable for struggling Canadians.
Recent MNP data suggests nearly half of Albertans are just $200 away from disaster.
Kris Sims, Alberta director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation joins the show tonight to tell us how we got here and how we dig our way out.
