PBO Defends Decision Not to Include Climate Change Impact Costs in Budget Analysis

The Parliamentary Budget Officer defended his decision not to include the impacts of climate change in his analysis of the upcoming federal budget, saying those costs are difficult to estimate and that global temperature changes would continue even in the absence of carbon emissions. “Even though it would be ideal to have a cost-benefit analysis, the benefits are always not very tangible and not easily measurable,” Yves Giroux told the Government Operations Committee on March 27. During the committee meeting, Mr. Giroux presented his findings from a March 7 report that analyzes the federal government’s Expenditure Plan and Main Estimates for 2024-25. Among the main findings were that federal spending on elderly benefits is set to surpass the $80 billion mark, the Canada Health Transfer is set to increase by $2.7 billion, and nearly $2.3 billion has been reallocated through the Refocusing Government Spending exercise....