Premier Andrew Furey and newly minted Finance Minister Siobhan Coady will deliver their first budget this afternoon.

The global pandemic delayed this year’s budget and exacerbated a fiscal situation that was dire even before the economy took a turn.

In July, then-finance minister Tom Osborne released numbers indicating that the provincial deficit had more than doubled to 2.1 billion dollars.

The price of oil plummeted, creating greater economic uncertainty. The previous budget was based on projections of oil at $68 dollars US per barrel double the actual price in July.

As a result, revenue is down dramatically, while borrowing increased by $2 billion dollars to $3.2 billion. Expenses – including health care costs, and COVID relief measures were up.

Two interim supply bills have been brought in to keep services running while government grappled with bringing forward a budget in what is a changing and challenging time.

Premier Andrew Furey remained tight-lipped about the budget when questioned by reporters yesterday.

He reiterated that there won’t be any surprises and that the budget is about helping families navigate the pandemic.

VOCM’s budget coverage begins this afternoon at 2:00 when Minister Coady begins her budget speech in the House of Assembly.