It’s the economic anxiety, stupid

CALGARY—The good times are officially over. That high standard of living we as Canadians enjoyed will no longer be. And it’s not because of immigrants, or the left, or “wokeness.” No, it’s the bureaucratic austerity approach that—even though those policies ushered in Brexit in the United Kingdom —is deeply ingrained in our politics and economic policies. The only thing that approach has produced is crushing income and wealth inequalities. And the Liberals are doubling down on starving government while transferring those resources to the private sector, hence exacerbating those aforementioned inequalities. We are in a recession. On May 29, Statistics Canada concluded: “Real gross domestic product (GDP) edged down 0.1 per cent in March, partially offsetting February’s increase (+0.2 per cent) and driven by contractions in goods-producing industries.” StatsCan posted a -0.1 per cent change in GDP for the first quarter of 2026, following “a decline of 0.1 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2025.” What is troubling about this data is that the decline is concentrated in goods-producing industries while services-producing industries increased. Why does this matter? Service industries are notoriously lower wage, fewer benefits, and precarious by nature. This means that as these industries occupy more of the economy, they will catapult workers closer to poverty in an affordability crisis. Instead of there being the social safety net to help them, the Carney government is doubling down on ripping that safety net into tatters. These realities will usher in more civil discontent, which will lead to political turmoil. It’s time y’all peep game. The next step is for establishment media to write a bazillion stories about bringing down costs, and that burden will be borne by the most economically vulnerable. The Globe and Mail wasted no time in publishing an opinion piece about cutting seniors’ benefits. They call it targeting those genuinely in need, which translates into means-testing, which often leaves vulnerable people—but not vulnerable enough, according to out-of-touch bureaucrats—shit out of luck. You may say that there are many seniors who are rich off of their homes and boomers are hoarding wealth; however, there are many more who are barely surviving. In addition, those boomers are also watching their biggest asset devalue over time, so, as a whole, they aren’t as wealthy as you think. The Laurentian Elite will have us pummelling each other for scraps while they hoard wealth and resources. Establishment news media are the mouthpieces for the ruling class, so they will be pushing to defund one group over another. Concurrently, Liberal and Conservative politicians will be going on tour to weaponize blame against marginalized groups. We can already see them using Indigenous land rights to scare working people who are already anxious about their livelihoods. Last year, the British Columbia Supreme Court recognized Aboriginal title of the Cowichan people in the consequential Cowichan Tribes v. Canada decision. A Global News broadcast showed Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre spreading fear about the ruling: “Almost all of the province is under some sort of claim. And if this precedent holds up, then all of British Columbians may be free and may face the loss of their title.” This is nasty work. The Supreme Court of Canada has already affirmed those rights as fundamental. A paper on Aboriginal title and private property rights from Osgoode Law School in 2015 affirmed: “At the same time the Supreme Court was careful to note that the declaration of Aboriginal title did not apply to “privately owned or underwater lands.” This is evidence of an economic anxiety that people feel. How long it will take Prime Minister Mark Carney to wear this angst politically is to be determined—if he wears it at all. What will Carney do to alleviate the economic pressures on working people? Nothing much, so far. And some voters know it. On June 1, Liaison Strategies released a federal poll showing the Liberals slightly losing support while the NDP jumped: “The Liberal lead has narrowed from 12 points to nine, the Conservatives are up a point, and the NDP has jumped five points to 16 per cent.” It should be noted that the NDP collapse in the last election favoured the Liberals. What is particularly interesting is that the NDP are level with the Liberals for voters aged 18 to 34, overtaking the Conservative success with that demographic. What this demonstrates is that young people, especially, are looking for an out from Carney’s iteration of Margaret Thatcher economics. That devastated the working class in England, and there’s no reason to believe it won’t do the same here. Erica Ifill is host of the Bad+Bitchy podcast.