Leading economists want less talk, more numbers from federal budget watchdog

Leading Canadian economists are calling for the Parliamentary Budget Officer (PBO) to reduce commentary and increase use of peer review for its reports. The push comes as Interim PBO Jason Jacques faces replacement or confirmation as permanent head, while the OECD reviews the office's operations. Economists including Trevor Tombe, Don Drummond, and Kevin Page criticized Jacques's September 2025 testimony where he called federal finances "stupefying" and "unsustainable." While some agree with the fiscal assessment, they argue the PBO should stick to facts rather than adjectives. The criticism follows controversial 2022-2024 carbon pricing analyses that omitted climate benefits. The OECD review will examine the PBO's adherence to nine governance principles including external evaluation. Jacques acknowledged his language was distracting but defended the underlying numbers in his September economic outlook.