From its title, “Masters of Our Destiny,” the 532-page budget released on Thursday by Prime Minister Mark Carney of Canada emphasized reducing the country’s longstanding dependence on the United States and diversifying its trade with the rest of the world.
“Canadians know that we are living through extraordinary times,” François-Philippe Champagne, the finance minister, said as he introduced the budget in the House of Commons. “The rules we counted on no longer seem to hold.”
He added: “As Canadians, we know how to turn global volatility into national opportunity.”
Most major items in the budget had been previously announced, in most cases by Mr. Carney. And, as is often the case with Canadian budgets, details remain scant and timelines long for many of the proposed measures.
There were, however, some surprises. The government pledged to work with its municipal and provincial counterparts to end homelessness within a decade. And Mr. Champagne said that the “operating” portion of the budget — a measure that excludes spending on large projects and military equipment — will be balanced within the coming year.
Here are some key points.
On Trade With the United States
The budget calculates that the government has committed 44 billion Canadian dollars in relief spending for workers and businesses affected by President Trump’s trade war with its neighbor.
In August, Canada walked away from trade talks in Washington after both sides appeared to be far apart on several key issues. On Sunday, Mr. Carney said in a social media post that following conversations with Mr. Trump, officials in the two countries were moving toward restarting talks.
The budget indicated that Canada has relatively little interest in accepting Mr. Trump’s “unjust” tariffs.
It said that the government “continues to believe that a mutually beneficial trade agreement is achievable. In seeking that path forward, our position is clear: any trade deal must respect Canada’s sovereignty and the right of Canadians to determine our own economic future.”
The Cost of Living
Mr. Carney and his approach to dealing with Washington have consistently received high approval ratings in polls, but respondents have also indicated concern about the rising cost of living. Like the rest of the world, Canadians have faced substantial increases in fuel costs caused by the U.S. and Israeli war with Iran.
The budget increases by 50 percent the refunds available to households with modest or low incomes to offset rising grocery costs. About 1 million households will get grants to convert to heat pumps to reduce their natural gas and electricity bills.
The budget repeats Mr. Carney’s plans to increase new home and apartment construction, committing 13 billion Canadian dollars over 10 years to building “non market” housing.
But it also sets aside 11.2 billion Canadian dollars to start an effort to end homelessness within a decade.
The initial money will be spent over four years and focus on projects that will “bring housing together with health, mental health, addictions, and social supports” to ensure that people remain in their new homes.
Building Businesses
As Mr. Carney has done in earlier speeches, Mr. Champagne emphasized the need for Canada to grow its businesses to assert its sovereignty.
At the center of those efforts is a previously announced measure that will allow businesses to deduct the full cost of major expenditures immediately rather than over several tax years. By the government’s calculations, that will make Canada’s effective tax rate on new investments about half that of the United States.
Next Steps
Unlike the United States, the release of budgets in Canada does not mark a period of long negotiation and revision. Governments in Canada never make major revisions to budget bills after they are presented to Parliament. If a budget is defeated in a House of Commons vote, the government falls. Mr. Carney’s Liberal Party, however, now has a majority, largely thanks to Conservative members of Parliament switching allegiances, so this budget’s passage is assured.
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