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People’s Party of Canada releases audited financial report ahead of election call

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4 minute read

They’re a small party with big ambitions and not much to hide apparently.  In the lead up to an expected election call Maxime Bernier’s People’s Party of Canada has released a few highlights from the party’s 2020 audited financial report.  This short read sheds some interesting light.  For example, leader Maxime Bernier has disclosed that he’s taking a salary of just over $100,000.  Would be nice to see the same from Canada’s major parties.

From a release of the People’s Party of Canada

The People’s Party of Canada recently filed its 2020 audited financial report with Elections Canada, in accordance with regulations. That report covers the 12-month period between January 1 and December 31, 2020.

We would like to highlight the main items in this report so that you aware of the Party’s financial situation as a member, dedicated volunteer, supporter, or as a donor or potential donor. You can read the full report here.

REVENUES

In 2020, the Party raised $963,059 in donations and $64,407 in membership fees. After adding transfers and interest income, total revenues for 2020 amounted to $1,146,607.

SALARIES AND PROFESSIONAL FEES

The Party’s main item of expenses in 2020 was salaries and benefits, at $395,690. The Party’s had four full-time employees at the beginning of the year and six at the end of the year, including the Leader. Mr. Bernier did not receive any salary or compensation from the Party in 2018 and 2019, as he was then receiving a salary as a Member of Parliament. He only started receiving a salary at the beginning of 2020 and his salary for the year was $104,000.

Contrary to other parties, the Party did not apply for the federal government’s COVID-19 wage subsidy program. The Party also paid $73,428 in professional fees to non-staffers.

LAWYER FEES

The Party spent $61,366 in legal fees in 2020 to defend itself in various lawsuits launched against it. The costs of the current defamation lawsuit against Warren Kinsella are not paid by the Party but by Mr. Bernier himself.

VARIOUS EXPENSES

In 2020, the Party also spent the following amounts on:

  • Advertising = $45,226
  • Travel = $32,454
  • Office supply = $29,301
  • Database = $40,382
  • Telecommunications = $7,182
  • Interest and bank charges = $28,338
  • Rent = $19,284

The Party transferred $42,280 to candidates for the October 2020 by-elections in Toronto Centre and York Centre.

Note that following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, and in order to reduce costs during these uncertain times, the Party closed its Gatineau office in June 2020 and only reopened one in Ottawa in July 2021 in preparation for the general election. All staffers worked remotely during that period.

SURPLUS

The Party manages its finances in a responsible manner, did not borrow any money to run its election campaign in the fall of 2019, and does not have any debt. Thanks to the generosity of our donors, we finished the year 2020 with $431,635 in cash and cash equivalents. This will serve as a cushion for the snap election expected in the fall of 2021.

CONCLUSION

Running a party necessitates the work of thousands of volunteers, but also involves unavoidable costs. We are proud of what has been accomplished by the People’s Party of Canada so far and we thank the generous donors who made it possible. If you want to help the Party be better financially prepared to sell its bold Canada First platform and fight for Freedom, Responsibility, Fairness and Respect in the next election, please donate here.

Many thanks,
The PPC Team
August 11, 2021

After 15 years as a TV reporter with Global and CBC and as news director of RDTV in Red Deer, Duane set out on his own 2008 as a visual storyteller. During this period, he became fascinated with a burgeoning online world and how it could better serve local communities. This fascination led to Todayville, launched in 2016.

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While Canada’s population explodes, the federal workforce grows even faster

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From the Fraser Institute

By Ben Eisen and Milagros Palacios

Hiring by the federal government in excess of population growth cost taxpayers $7.5 billion in 2022/23.

The federal workforce has grown more rapidly than the Canadian population starting in 2015/16, imposing significant costs on taxpayers, finds a new study published by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think tank.

Federal government employment has grown significantly faster than the Canadian population starting in 2015/16, and we’re already seeing the consequences,” said Ben Eisen, senior fellow at the Fraser Institute and author of Growing Government Workforce Puts Pressure on Federal Finances, the first in a series of studies on federal reform.

The study finds that between 2015/16 and 2022/23, the latest year of data available, the number of full-time federal workers has increased by 26.1 per cent compared to growth in the overall Canadian population of 9.1 per cent.

“Growth in federal employment has almost tripled the rate of population growth since 2015/16, which is simply unsustainable” commented Eisen.

How much will this growth in government cost Canadian taxpayers?

According to the study, if federal hiring had simply kept pace with the rate of Canada’s population growth taxpayers would have saved $7.5 billion.

The reduced spending on federal employees would lower the federal deficit, which is expected to exceed $35.3 billion in 2022/23.

“The growth in the number of federal employees has been a major contributor to the growth in federal government spending and the size of deficits in recent years,” Eisen said.

  • The Canadian federal government workforce has grown more rapidly than the Canadian population starting in 2015/16, imposing significant costs on taxpayers.
  • In fact, between 2015/16 and 2022/23, the latest year of data available, the number of full-time federal government workers has increased by 26.1 per cent, compared to growth in the overall Canadian population of 9.1 per cent.
  • If federal hiring had simply kept pace with the rate of Canada’s population growth taxpayers would have saved $7.5 billion.
  • The reduced spending on federal employees would lower the federal deficit, which is expected to exceed $35.3 billion in 2022/23.

Ben Eisen

Senior Fellow, Fraser Institute

Milagros Palacios

Director, Addington Centre for Measurement, Fraser Institute
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From Smug to Subservient, Justin Trudeau Bows to MAGA Realities at Mar-a-Lago

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The Opposition with Dan Knight

After years of mocking Trump and betting on a woke Washington, Trudeau now finds himself groveling to save Canada’s economy from MAGA’s hardball tactics.

Justin Trudeau has spent years mocking and deriding the MAGA movement, banking on a continuation of woke, progressive leadership in Washington. He bet everything on a Kamala Harris presidency, believing the days of Donald Trump’s America-first agenda were a distant memory. Now, with Trump back in office, Trudeau finds himself groveling at Mar-a-Lago, trying to salvage what’s left of Canada’s crumbling economic future.

This is the same Justin Trudeau who painted MAGA as a dangerous fringe movement, aligning himself with global elites and lecturing Americans on their supposed moral failings. He openly scoffed at Trump’s tariffs, his immigration policies, and his tough-on-China stance. Trudeau’s bet? That a Democrat-controlled America would reward his sycophantic pandering with favorable trade deals and continued subsidies for his progressive fantasies.

But Trudeau’s gamble failed. Trump is back, and Trudeau’s entire house of cards is collapsing. Canada’s economy, propped up by unfair trade advantages and U.S. energy consumption, is suddenly exposed. The 25% tariff threat on Canadian imports has Trudeau scrambling, not with bold leadership, but with empty promises and nervous laughter at Mar-a-Lago.

In a moment of pure irony, Trudeau, who once lectured Trump about values, now finds himself kneeling to kiss the ring. MAGA, what? Gone is the smug defiance, replaced by desperate platitudes about border security and economic cooperation. But let’s be clear: Trudeau isn’t there to protect Canadian interests; he’s there to save face. His government is woefully unprepared for Trump’s hardball tactics, and the Prime Minister’s office knows it.

During a recent dinner at Mar-a-Lago, President-elect Donald Trump reportedly suggested that Canada could become the 51st U.S. state if it couldn’t handle the economic impact of proposed tariffs. This remark came after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau expressed concerns that a 25% tariff on Canadian imports would “kill” Canada’s economy.

Trump’s comment underscores the significant economic interdependence between the two nations. In 2022, trade between the U.S. and Canada exceeded $900 billion, with the U.S. accounting for 63.4% of Canada’s global trade. This deep economic integration means that shifts in U.S. trade policy can have profound effects on Canada’s economy.

Trump’s quip about Canada becoming the “51st state” wasn’t just a joke; it was a power move, a reminder of who holds the cards in this relationship. While Trudeau nervously laughed, the message was clear: Canada needs the U.S. far more than the U.S. needs Canada. Trudeau’s weakness has brought us here. Instead of securing energy independence, he’s strangled Alberta’s oil industry with crippling regulations. Instead of standing up to China, he’s kowtowed to Beijing while relying on U.S. trade to keep his agenda afloat.

And now, Trudeau is at the mercy of a man he spent years mocking. Trump’s tariffs are a direct consequence of Trudeau’s inability to lead. His failure to address illegal immigration and the fentanyl crisis has made Canada not just a bad neighbor, but a liability.

Trudeau’s Liberals have always been more concerned with appearances than action, more focused on virtue signaling than real governance. But now, the bill has come due. And the man holding the ledger is none other than Donald J. Trump.

So here we are: Justin Trudeau, the woke globalist, reduced to pleading for mercy at Mar-a-Lago. His smugness replaced by desperation, his rhetoric exposed as hollow. MAGA what, indeed.

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