LA RONGE, SK, Nov. 8, 2025 /CNW/ - Changes in the global trading system are causing massive disruptions and uncertainty for Canadians. The world has changed, and Canada's economic strategy must change. Budget 2025: Canada Strong is the government's plan to transform the economy from one that is reliant on a single trade partner to one that is stronger, more self-sufficient and more resilient to global shocks. This budget is a plan to enable $1 trillion in investments over the next five years. That can increase our GDP by over 3.5%--equivalent to more than $3,500 for every Canadian--delivering far more for Canadians than what's being taken from us. This is a plan to build Canada strong and to give ourselves more than any foreign government can take away.
Today, the Honourable Buckley Belanger, Secretary of State (Rural Development), met with community members in La Ronge to highlight Budget 2025 investments to support a wide range of infrastructure projects and help local communities build Canada strong.
Budget 2025 has announced support for Kitsaki Hall in La Ronge and for the RCMP Heritage Centre in Regina. This investment will help build strong communities and improve local infrastructure in Saskatchewan.
The Build Communities Strong Fund will invest $51 billion over 10 years, followed by $3 billion per year ongoing, to revitalize local infrastructure: the hospitals, universities and colleges that serve our people, the roads and bridges that move our goods, and the water and transit systems that sustain our towns. The program will include three streams:
- A provincial and territorial stream will provide $17.2 billion over 10 years to support infrastructure projects and priorities in housing, health care and education. This could include transit infrastructure, colleges, universities, medical schools, and water and wastewater facilities.
- From this stream, $5 billion over three years will be dedicated specifically to a new Health Infrastructure Fund, upgrading health infrastructure such as hospitals, emergency rooms and urgent care centres.
- A direct delivery stream will provide $6 billion to support regionally significant projects, large building retrofits, climate adaptation or community infrastructure. This could include clean-energy generation and storage projects, flood protection, and new community and recreational spaces.
- A community stream will provide $27.8 billion for local roads, bridges, water systems and community centres, getting the basics right and helping towns and cities grow.
The Build Communities Strong Fund will build new infrastructure to speed up work and bring down costs. When colleges and universities have archaic buildings, when hospitals are over capacity and when water systems fail, productivity drops and businesses pay more. The Build Communities Strong Fund will spur economic activity, help create new careers in the skilled trades and give investors the confidence to build around reliable public infrastructure.
This fund is part of the government's broader nation-building mission. This includes the Major Projects Office to fast-track transformative energy, trade and transportation projects across the country, Build Canada Homes to supercharge housing construction, and the Defence Investment Agency to use domestic resources and materials to scale up our industrial base.
The past year has revealed there are limits to Canada's economic independence. Budget 2025 is tackling that challenge head on. It is our plan to take control and build the future we want for ourselves. It is our plan to build Canada strong.
Quotes
"Budget 2025 is an investment budget--a confident Canada taking control of its own future. Central to that mission is building local infrastructure so we can empower Canadians through faster commutes, better careers and lower costs. With a new investment of over $50 billion, we are building stronger communities to build Canada strong."
– The Right Honourable Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada
"To build the strongest economy in the G7, we must build infrastructure at a speed and scale not seen in generations. The Build Communities Strong Fund is an essential investment in nation-building, targeting the roads, hospitals, schools and water systems that underpin local prosperity. By delivering this critical infrastructure to communities across the country, we are directly investing in our workers and businesses--and building Canada strong."
– The Honourable François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Finance and National Revenue
"We need to see investments in infrastructure that brings life to rural, remote and Indigenous communities, and that is what this project is. I'm proud our federal government recognized Kitsaki Hall as a priority community build in Budget 2025 as part of the Build Communities Strong Fund and is investing in it so Kitsaki Hall continues to be a vital gathering place for generations. That's how you build Canada strong--from the community up, all across the country."
– The Honourable Buckley Belanger, Secretary of State (Rural Development)
Quick facts
- Budget 2025 has announced support for a number of projects that will help build strong communities through improved local infrastructure.
- Under the provincial and territorial stream of the Build Communities Strong Fund, provinces and territories will be required to cost-match federal investments and ensure that supported municipalities reduce development charges and do not levy other taxes that hinder housing supply.
- Budget 2025 delivers on the government's Comprehensive Expenditure Review to modernize government, improve efficiencies, and deliver better results and services for Canadians.
- It includes an initial $60 billion in savings over five years and makes generational investments in housing, infrastructure, defence, productivity and competitiveness. These are strategic capital investments designed to then catalyze $500 billion of new investment into Canada over the next five years.
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Contacts: Connor Burton, Senior Communications and Issues Advisor and Press Secretary, Office of the Secretary of State (Rural Development), [email protected], 343-549-8093; Media Relations, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, [email protected]
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