Alberta’s NDP government has announced it will deliver its first budget on Oct. 27.
Finance Minister Joe Ceci said the document will present plans to boost the economy and create jobs, while protecting core services.
He says there will also be a time frame to get the budget back into balance.
This year, the budget is expected to be $5.9 billion in the red and Ceci said that on the upper end, could be as high as $6.5 billion.
Alberta is already six months into the 2015-16 fiscal year without a budget in place.
One reporter in Edmonton asked whether or not there would be new taxes come budget day.
“You’re going to have to wait until October 27th,” Ceci said.
“I’m not going to release details of the budget here, today. But we believe we have taken steps to stabilize public services as a result of the budget we’re bringing forward. We’re going to show a pathway to balance and we’re going to stimulate economic growth in this province.”
The former Progressive Conservative government introduced a budget in the spring, but lost the election before passing it.
