The Liberals are bailing out Canada Post by loaning the Crown corporation over $1 billion right before its cash reserves ran out. However, if the financial losses over the last six years continue, the Canadian taxpayers will never recover that loan.
Canada Post revealed on Friday that the Liberals will provide them with the $1.034 billion repayable loan for the 2025-26 fiscal year.
“This approach will maintain continuity of Canada Post’s operations but will not solve the Corporation’s structural issues. It will, however, provide a temporary financial bridge while Canada Post and the government work together on a plan to secure the long-term viability of a service that millions of Canadians consider essential,” reads Canada Post’s news release.
Canada Post recorded a financial loss of $748 million in 2023, following a loss of $548 million in 2022. While the Crown corporation delivered 5.5 billion letters in 2006, it delivered only 2.2 billion in 2023.
The Crown corporation revealed that it has been losing money since 2018 due to high labour costs and regulatory measures impeding the company’s ability to evolve and compete.
“As the Corporation shared in its 2023 Annual Report, without this short-term financing measure, the company would completely deplete its cash reserves by the second quarter of 2025,” reads the release.
The corporation said it is already improving its service through facilities upgrades, new sorting equipment, digital platforms, and more.
The Crown corporation recently increased postage rates by around 25%, citing inflation and operational challenges.
The recent Canada Post strike lasted 32 days after over 55,000 workers walked off the job on Nov. 15 as the Canadian Union of Postal Workers looked to increase wages, pensions, and improve employees’ health benefits.
The Liberal government has maintained, most recently in a question period note for Minister of Public Services Jean-Yves Duclos, that the corporation was not taxpayer-funded.
“Canada Post is a Crown Corporation that operates at arm’s length from the Government, and its operations are funded by the revenue generated by the sale of its products and services, not taxpayer dollars,” reads the response.
One popular X commenter showcased the financial losses over the last six years in a post to X.
“Canada Post has just secured a $1 billion loan from taxpayers,” said the commenter. “To stay alive.”
Another person on X said that isn’t how it should work.
“If a corporation cannot sustain itself, let it go bankrupt, and Canada Post is no exception. Privatization is the answer,” wrote the user on X.
“Remember this the next time Canada Post claims they aren’t funded by taxpayer dollars,” wrote another user.