Finance Minister Joe Oliver tables balanced budget

Apr 21, 2015 | News

Finance Minister Joe Oliver will release federal budget on April 21. (Alex Guibord via Flickr under Creative Commons License 2.0)

Finance Minister Joe Oliver released the 2015 federal budget on April 21. (Alex Guibord via Flickr under Creative Commons License 2.0)

By Shai Williamson, Edward Bayley and Celia Grimbly

Finance Minister Joe Oliver released, as promised, a balanced federal budget on Tuesday with a surplus of $1.4-billion.

The Conservative government’s budget offers several tax breaks for families, funding for defence and public transit, and a lower tax rate for small businesses.

The budget estimates the total cost of family tax benefits for 2015 is $4.5-billion.

The budget is usually rolled out in February or March but with declining oil prices and a weak economy, Oliver delayed its release.

The average price of North American Crude was assumed to average $54 in 2015 and rise to $67 in 2016 and $75 in 2017.

Analysts told Humber News Oliver’s pledge to release a balanced budget later than expected is a political strategy and that the contents of the budget will structure Harper’s campaign for a fourth term.

Many of the promises tabled in the budget are backloaded, meaning much of the funding will not be distributed for a few years, after the election.

Humber News broke down highlights from the budget below.