Finance minister claims Ontario has ‘operating balance’ as debt balloons

Ontario’s Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy insists the Ford government is running an “operating balance” even as the province’s debt load careens towards half a trillion dollars in 2027.
Since taking office in 2018, Premier Doug Ford has increased Ontario’s debt to $470 billion — a number that’s projected to rise to $501.7 billion by 2027, according to the government’s own projections.
According to the Financial Accountability Office of Ontario, health care and interest on debt are anticipated to “exceed revenue growth” in 2029, which means that the province’s debt will reach $549.3 billion. While the Progressive Conservatives were sharply critical of former Liberal Premier Kathleen Wynne for raising the province’s debt to $350 billion in 2017, the party is now defending the figures as “good debt.”
“It’s in relation to our economy and our economy has grown by $350 billion, while our debt has grown by roughly $100 billion,” Bethlenfalvy told Global News during a recent news conference.“ We have two credit rating upgrades, and our interest rate is now five and a half cents on the dollar, which puts us in the best position since over a decade ago. That’s the lowest since the 1980s,” the finance minister added.As he explained the numbers, Bethlenfalvy also appeared to borrow a concept from Mark Carney, something the prime minister has talked about as the federal Liberals craft their 2025 budget.
Carney has stated the government will balance the operating budget over the next three years — clearly delineating the operating and capital budgets and the overall costs associated.Bethlenfalvy suggested the provincial government is taking a similar view of the Ontario budget.
The minister stated, “We’re generally operating with an operating balance.” While the 2025-26 budget doesn’t include references to the phrase, a spokesperson for Bethlenfalvy told Global News the minister was referring to the province’s expenses excluding the interest on debt charges.
The 2025-26 budget shows the province expects to take in $219.9 billion in revenue this year and has allocated $216.3 billion for total base programs — which the Ministry of Finance contends is an operational balance.
The budget, however, also includes $16.2 billion to service the province’s growing debt, which pushes the total expenses to $232.5 billion. To pay for it all, the Ford government posted a total deficit of $14.6 billion.