Skip to Content News Archives Economy Energy Oil & Gas Renewables Electric Vehicles Mining Commodities Agriculture Real Estate Mortgages Mortgage Rates Finance Banking Insurance Fintech Cryptocurrency Work Wealth Smart Money Wealth Management Investor Personal Finance Family Finance Retirement Taxes High Net Worth FP Comment Executive Women Puzzmo Newsletters Financial Times Business Essentials More Innovation Information Technology FP500 Podcasts Small Business Lives Told Tails Told Shopping Financial Post Store Obituaries Place a Notice Advertising Advertising With Us Advertising Solutions Postmedia Ad Manager Sponsorship Requests Classifieds Place a Classifieds ad Working Profile Settings My Subscriptions Saved Articles My Offers Newsletters Customer Service FAQ News Economy Energy Mining Real Estate Finance Work Wealth Investor FP Comment Executive Women Puzzmo Newsletters Financial Times Business Essentials HomeFP CommentWilliam Watson: Stop spinning us with our own moneyOf all the wasteful forms of government spending the very worst are the TV ads in which governments tell us what great jobs they're doingLast updated 1 hour ago You can save this article by registering for free here. Or sign-in if you have an account.A fan wearing a Canada hat watches on as the Canada-Switzerland World Cup 2026 Group B match gets underway on the big screen at the Canada Soccer House fan zone in North Vancouver, B.C. on June 24, 2026. Photo by Lori Culbert/PostmediaOf all the many forms of egregiously wasteful public spending there are — the billion dollars to renovate Parliament, the hundreds of thousands for fine airplane dining as our elect jet off to summits here and there, the millions to make and distribute TV shows and films only handfuls of people ever watch — the most galling are the “public service” ads, which are actually “private partisan service” ads, in which our governments use our own tax dollars to tell us what a great job they’re doing. It’s bad enough being spun. But being spun with our own money is the worst. For the governments that do it, it’s the acme of arrogance, the nadir of nihilism.Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.Exclusive articles from Barbara Shecter, Joe O'Connor, Gabriel Friedman, and others.Daily content from Financial Times, the world's leading global business publication.Unlimited online access to read articles from Financial Post, National Post and 15 news sites across Canada with one account.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword.Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.Exclusive articles from Barbara Shecter, Joe O'Connor, Gabriel Friedman and others.Daily content from Financial Times, the world's leading global business publication.Unlimited online access to read articles from Financial Post, National Post and 15 news sites across Canada with one account.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword.Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one account.Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.Enjoy additional articles per month.Get email updates from your favourite authors.Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one accountShare your thoughts and join the conversation in the commentsEnjoy additional articles per monthGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an AccountorTwo current examples on full display during the World Cup are Ottawa’s ads talking about what a great job it’s doing with its summer-long cut in the gas tax and its new distortion of the GST credit into a supposed groceries and essentials benefit, and a new “Protect Ontario” campaign that tells Ontarians about all the good things the Ford government is doing to protect them, whether from car-jackers, terrorists or American trade officials. All cheery, slick, upbeat and paid for by you and me. To persuade you and me what a great job is being done by the people we’ve elected, even if (chances are, in our multi-party system) we didn’t actually vote for them ourselves. But maybe we will next time.Get the latest headlines, breaking news and columns.By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder.The next issue of Top Stories will soon be in your inbox.We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try againIn tone and tenor such ads are so political that if they ended with a “brought to you by the Liberal Party of Canada” or “paid for by Ontario’s Progressive Conservatives” rather than the Canada and Ontario logos and that little O Canada chime that goes with the maple leaf logo, nobody would be surprised. Though we’d all be shocked, since we’ve got used to the idea that the people we elect should be able — Trump-like — to promote themselves at our expense, that now being regarded as a perfectly legitimate use of public funds.Of course, the tax credits for political parties are so generous that even if they did blow their own horns strictly on their own dime, it would really be mostly a tax-funded dime.You’d think an opposition party could make a big stink about the blatantly self-interested waste involved in such advertising. Yet when they get into government themselves they always slip-slide smoothly into their own publicly-funded self-promotion. The Carney government, elected at a time of national crisis, supposedly to bring adult, disciplined management to the treasury, nevertheless found $345 million in new spending in last fall’s budget for “advertising for communicating to Canadians” over the next five years. Communicating to Canadians how great the Carney government is, that is.The budget’s “gender and diversity impact” annex — 49 pages of woke make-work — says of the $345 million that: “This measure benefits all Canadians by ensuring they receive clear and timely information about their rights and responsibilities, the programs and services that affect them, and any potential risks to health, safety, and the environment, enabling informed decisions and easier access to support.” Sorry, in the ads I see there’s nothing at all about rights, responsibilities, risk or safety, just lots and lots about all the fine things Canada’s new government is doing.The budget’s impact section goes on: “This measure will also indirectly benefit the advertising industry in Canada.” But to allay any concerns we might have about possible systemic discrimination because of that, it adds “According to Statistics Canada data on occupation unit groups by gender, advertising, marketing and public relations managers and professionals have higher proportions of women than men.”I sincerely hope such hooey is written by AI. It would be a shame to waste an actual human mind — of whatever age, gender or specific identity group — shovelling such muck.In the same ilk, but using more antiquated technology, my junk mail this week included my regular update from the local MP, featuring a picture of herself, Mark Carney and a gaggle of uniformed schoolgirls whose identity went unexplained. “Dear Friends and Neighbours,” it starts off, “Your government has been hard at work!” And it goes on to talk about all the money the government is spending on the ports of Montreal and Quebec, youth training, temporarily cutting the gas tax, making a “generational investment”of $755 million in sport (is “generational” eclipsing “existential” as Ottawa’s favourite adjective?), and so on and so on. “There’s more work ahead,” it concludes. “But know this: we’re moving with focus — and I’ve got your back every step of the way.”My wristwatch tells me I’ve been doing my 10,000 steps every day. I haven’t noticed my MP at my back for any one of them. I have noticed a distinct lightening of my wallet, however. Join the Conversation This website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. Read more about cookies here. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.