Navigator logo

Category: Media

Cyber Security Concerns Are Growing: Discover’s Ontario Fraud Pulse 2025

Posted on by

Ontario’s large population, dynamic economic activity and high volume of e-commerce activity make it a hotspot for financial fraud and scams. To better understand how Ontarians are experiencing this threat, Discover—the research arm of Navigator—recently surveyed 4,800 residents across the province.

This brief report explores rising concerns about financial fraud through key demographic lenses. For example, while almost three-quarters (64%) of Ontarians overall feel more vulnerable to financial fraud than just a few years ago, we found that women, Boomers and immigrants to Canada report higher vulnerability.

Whether you work in government, business or civil society these data offer actionable insights to support more informed decision-making.

Download the report below—and if you would like support turning insights into strategy, the Discover and Navigator teams are just a conversation away.

What Canadians Want Next: Navigator Discover’s Post-Election Priority Pulse

Posted on by

The ballots are counted, the commentary is fading, and now the spotlight shifts to governing. Within 48 hours of the April 28 result, Discover—Navigator’s research arm—surveyed 1,500 Canadians to capture a fresh, data-rich picture of what voters expect from Prime Minister Mark Carney’s first year in office.

Inside this report you’ll find:

  • Economic urgency laid bare – cost of living, jobs, and fiscal discipline dominate a crowded wish-list.
  • Cabinet-clean-slate sentiment – seven in ten Canadians want a brand-new front bench.
  • Cross-party common ground – despite stark divides, Liberals and Conservatives share four of their top five priorities.
  • A wary eye south of the border – tariffs, Trump, and trade realignment shape Canada’s next moves.
  • Confidence—and caution—about the road ahead – where optimism runs high, and where anxieties still simmer.

Whether you advise government, business, or civil society, this forward-looking deep dive reveals the levers that will matter most in the months ahead. Download the full report below—and if you need to translate these insights into strategy, the Discover and Navigator teams are only a conversation away.

A Balancing Act: Ontario’s 2025 Budget

Posted on by

Coming out of a consequential election with a supermajority, the Conservatives’ Budget 2025 is a product of its time—protecting Ontario against U.S. tariffs and global economic uncertainty threatening Ontario businesses, workers, and investments, even if it makes balancing the budget an uphill battle for 2027-28. More than a defensive posture, the budget declares Ontario open for business and willing to spend for it.

Projected to exceed fall forecasts by nearly tenfold, the budget is expected to yield a $14.6 billion deficit in the 2025-26 fiscal year. The budget deficit outlines a path to balance over the next three years.

Despite running a deficit, the Ford government maintains that a strong economy is the only way to boost government revenue. The government projects the measures announced in the budget will boost Ontario’s GDP by $200 billion and make Canada the most competitive G7 country.

Unprecedented investments in infrastructure, including energy, critical minerals, and transit projects, account for $33 billion in spending in 2025-26. Spending in Budget 2025 will help build Ontario highways, hospitals, mines and a tunnel under the 401. In his address to the legislature, Ontario Finance Minister, Peter Bethlenfalvy, said cutting taxes and investing in the economy would boost future revenues for social services.

You can find our full analysis of the budget below. For more analysis, or support engaging government on any of the budget announcements, contact your Navigator team or reach out at info@navltd.com.

Quebec Budget 2025: A Bare Bones Budget in a Brittle Economy

Posted on by

Quebec Finance Minister Éric Girard presented the CAQ’s seventh budget in a time of turbulence and economic uncertainty caused by diplomatic tensions and trade relations with the U.S. administration. The budget aims to help Quebec weather these difficult times while maintaining sound public finances.

The budget introduces measures to support businesses affected by U.S. tariffs, increase innovation, diversify markets, and invest in major infrastructure projects. It is also an opportunity for the province to foster growth through the reduction of administrative processes and regulatory red tape. Quebec will also continue to invest in improving the healthcare and education systems.

With the budget presented only a week before the American-imposed tariffs are set to come into effect on April 2, the Quebec government remains optimistic that trade discussions over the next months will yield less negative outcomes. The budget was forecasted on this hypothesis. Nevertheless, the situation of uncertainty is expected to have a lasting impact on the Quebec economy.

Investments to stimulate the economy will be coupled with a cut back on overall spending and changes to fiscal measures with the goal to achieve a balanced budget by 2029-2030. Quebecers can expect to see some tax incentives removed, a hike in prices, and changes to certain previously subsidized services.

Minister Girard is framing the budget as difficult decisions to strengthen the province in a time of uncertainty likened to the beginning of the pandemic in 2020.

You can find our full analysis of the budget below. For more analysis, or support engaging government on any of the budget announcements, contact your Navigator team or reach out at info@navltd.com.

Playing Defense: B.C. Prepares for Tough Economic Times

Posted on by

British Columbia became the first province to present its fiscal plan when it tabled Budget 2025 on March 4, the same day the U.S. enacted its new 25 per cent tariffs on all goods imported from Canada and Mexico. Like every province, B.C. has been preparing for this possibility since tariffs were initially floated by the incoming Trump administration in November 2024.

Budget 2025 is as much a story of what is not there rather than what is. Two key campaign promises—a $1,000 grocery rebate and low-interest financing for homebuilders—were both left on the cutting room floor with their respective price tags of $1.8 billion and $1.2 billion.

As noted in the budget preamble, B.C. is better positioned to weather the economic storm because its export markets are significantly more diverse than neighbouring provinces. The Minister of Finance has not used this as an excuse to sit on her hands, however, and has built a budget that focuses on navigating the economic uncertainty while further investing in the services that British Columbians rely on.

Major public services like urgent care, health care, schools and public transit all saw multi-billion-dollar bumps as the province looks to embark on a major infrastructure upgrade program.

All this investment comes at a cost though; B.C.’s record $10.9 billion deficit continues to rocket upward. In 2022/23, the provincial budget anticipated a surplus of $3.6 billion–how times have changed.

You can find our full analysis of the budget below. For more analysis, or support engaging government on any of the budget announcements, contact your Navigator team or reach out at info@navltd.com.