Ahead of budget season for the provinces and the federal government a report from the Fraser Institute is urging all governments to address the growing debts.
Co-author of the report, Jake Fuss, says the combined government debt federally and provincially is expected to reach 1-and-a-half trillion dollars this year.
That means a debt burden of between 25 and 50-thousand-dollars per person, depending on where you live.
Each province has different debt burdens.
Saskatchewan’s combined federal-provincial debt to GDP ratio is the lowest at just over 44 per cent and Ontario’s is the highest at just over 75 per cent.
It may seem like good news for Saskatchewan, but it’s still a net debt per person of $31-thousand.
Fuss explains that it’s no different than personal debt.
If you don’t pay it off, the interest rates grows, meaning higher debt and less money for public programs and services, and more debt that future generations will have to deal with.
Between the federal and provincial governments, $55-billion is spent annually on interest payments.