Paul Martin
Canadian finance minister from 1993 to 2002 and Liberal Prime Minister from 2003 to 2006.
Paul Martin was Canada's Liberal finance minister from November 1993 to June 2002, whose budget of 27 February 1995 set out C$25.3bn of cumulative spending cuts, and Prime Minister from December 2003 to February 2006.
Last refreshed: 7 October 2026
Timeline for Paul Martin
Cut programme spending deeply in Canada's 1995 budget
Is Britain Actually Broke?: Jenrick pledges £80bn a year in cutsBackground
Paul Martin's 1995 federal budget is the closest precedent for Reform UK's 2026 pledge of £80bn a year in cuts: Canada cut programme spending deeply after a debt scare, and bond yields fell over the following years.
Martin was Canada's Minister of Finance from November 1993 to June 2002 and Liberal Prime Minister from December 2003 to February 2006. He presented the 1995 budget on 27 February 1995. It set out C$25.3bn of cumulative spending reductions, nearly C$7 of cuts for every C$1 of new revenue, including cuts to transfers to the provinces. Canada balanced its federal budget in 1998.
The 1995 budget is the standard example cited by politicians WHO argue that credible spending cuts can win back bond investors.