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Branding a budget is a relatively new communications strategy. Paul Martin鈥檚 1996 budget was the first Canadian federal budget to be identified with an unofficial subtitle: Securing the Future. The following year, Building the Future for Canadians was used on the cover page of all budget documents.

This makes sense. Not because names like Big Beautiful Bill have become de rigueur in U.S. politics, but because a budget is really the ultimate communications manifesto for any government. It鈥檚 not just about numbers; it鈥檚 about the story they鈥檙e telling the public. And frankly, those stories haven鈥檛 been too inspired.

Looking back, most federal budget names feel like they were pulled from a beige folder labelled Safe Slogans That Say Very Little. A Low-Tax Plan for Jobs and Growth, Responsible Leadership, Building Today for a Better Tomorrow. They鈥檙e the political equivalent of Live, Laugh, Love. Generic. Recyclable. Unmemorable.

But every now and then, a title does manage to stick. Paul Martin鈥檚 Securing the Future resonated because it aligned with a defining fiscal moment: his aggressive deficit-cutting made Canada a G7 success story

But when every budget is framed as a 鈥減lan to grow鈥� or 鈥渋nvest in鈥� something vaguely virtuous, the names start to blur. And so does the story. That鈥檚 a missed opportunity, especially when trust is fragile and attention is scarce. The title isn鈥檛 just window dressing. It鈥檚 the first line of the narrative you want Canadians to buy into.

Which brings us to Mark Carney鈥檚 (sorry, Finance Minister Champagne鈥檚) first budget. I presume naming matters to this government. If only to avoid renaming its signature policy like the previous government attempted to do. And since Mr. Carney has dealt with branding private-sector documents like strategic plans, I suspect he knows that how the budget is branded isn鈥檛 just a trivial detail.

If this strategic plan for Canada primarily signals doom and gloom (i.e., cuts), then people and businesses will feel like they鈥檙e just bracing for endless hardship. But if it鈥檚 framed as a strategic North Star, even in tough times, then you鈥檙e giving everyone a clearer sense of direction and a bit of hope.

You think this goes without saying? It apparently doesn鈥檛. As Chantal H茅bert recently pointed out on a podcast, Carney used the word austerity in Qu茅bec when asked about the upcoming budget. That sounds like punishment rather than a plan. Using terms like deficit reduction or rigour in Qu茅bec makes the whole idea far more palatable.

As was the case during the last campaign, when Marc Carney told voters that 鈥渙ur old relationship with the U.S. is over,鈥� there may be an inclination to label these uncertain times as the new normal. But that narrative risks sounding like a defeatist way of telling Canadians to accept a permanent disadvantage. People can get behind a tough budget if they see a winnable goal.

If the government wants people to buy into sacrifices, it needs to offer more than resignation to a harsher reality. It has to paint a picture of how Canada can still thrive and find new strengths 鈥� even if the U.S. is rewriting the rules of the game.

This budget is also coming from a new government facing an opposition that鈥檚 more than ready to slap its own label on whatever the official narrative might be. If the government goes for something technocratic or bland, the opposition will be quick to rebrand it with something a lot catchier. And the PMO will be dealing with far less flattering punchy headlines.