Record $1.47-billion capital budget announced in New Brunswick

New Brunswick has revealed its record $1.47-billion capital budget.

The New Brunswick government has presented a record capital budget of $1.47 billion for 2026-27.

Half of the budget ($680 million) will go to transportation and infrastructure, followed by health at $247.3 million and education at $242.6 million.

“Now one year into our mandate, this government remains committed to supporting New Brunswickers,” said Finance Minister René Legacy. “We promised to invest in health care, housing, education, and in ways to make life more affordable for families.”

A breakdown of the capital budget provided in the legislature from Legacy includes:

• $540 million for improvements to roads, bridges, ferries and other transportation assets.
• $205 million to continue renovations, additions and other improvements at hospitals around the province.
• $193 million to continue work that has already begun inside schools, with an additional $9.7 million to begin upgrades, additions and preliminary work for new schools.
• $50 million for new construction on public housing in the province
• $42 million to replace aging medical equipment inside hospitals and clinics
• $27 million to improve equipment and other upgrades in schools.
• $24 million for social development to undertake key infrastructure upgrades such as electrical, ventilation, and heating and cooling systems.
• $8.75 million to upgrade ventilation in schools throughout the province
• $15 million for non-profit housing providers to add dozens of new units.
• $ 9 million for upkeep and maintenance on existing public housing units.
• $6 million to support aerial fire suppression and build a new warehouse for the wildfire management equipment and resources
• $4 million to fund large scale capital improvement projects meant to address school building issues which could limit or close a school building

After announcing the financial estimates, Legacy told reporters past governments had fallen behind on providing proper capital funding for schools.

“It’s not the new projects we announce,” said Legacy. ”It’s how many we open. For an example of how we fall behind, we only opened one school this year. We’re only planning to open one next year.

“We should be opening six a year and every year we don’t, we’re falling behind. So we’re catching up on that aspect.”

Capital education spending is about $50 million more than last year and will go towards the ongoing construction of two new Saint John schools (in the city’s peninsula and north end). The two new schools in Saint John will also serve as “community hubs” with wrap-around neighbourhood services.

The province’s financial estimates for education also include a new K-8 school in Campbellton, a new K-12 school in Shediac Cape, an addition to the school in Tabusintac, an addition and mid-life upgrade at École Saint-Henri in Moncton, along with a mid-life upgrade at Polyvalente Louis-J.-Robichaud in Shediac, and Polyvalente W.-Arthur-Losier in Tracadie-Sheila.

Legacy said work would also begin for the site selection and planning for six major school projects, including new schools in the Moncton and Woodstock areas, infrastructure renewals in the Fredericton area, and mid-life upgrades for a school in the Rexton area.

On capital health spending, Legacy said the $205 million earmarked for ongoing hospital renovations and additions would include ongoing construction for the Moncton Hospital’s new coronary care unit, projected to be finished in September 2027.

At the Saint John Regional Hospital, capital spending would be directed to the continuing construction of a new oncology clinic, ambulatory clinic, hybrid operating room, and 32-bed second floor ICU unit.

At the Dr. Everett Chalmers Hospital in Fredericton, the renovated labour and birth unit should be finished by late summer or early fall 2026 – part of facility-wide renovations worth $250 million which began a decade ago.

At the Chaleur Regional Hospital in Bathurst, planning for renovations to the labour and delivery unit as well as the facility’s tower will resume.

Legacy said the province will also begin work at the Dr. Georges-L.-Dumont University Hospital Centre in Moncton to construct a new endoscopy suite, which is expected to continue until 2029.

‘Slogans rather than solutions’

Responding to Tuesday’s capital estimates, Progressive Conservative finance critic Don Monahan pointed to the province’s latest deficit estimate of $834.7 million for the 2026-27 fiscal year – the province’s largest budget shortfall in two decades and $285.7 million more than the deficit projected in March.

“The government continues to spend as if the deficit does not exist, offering New Brunswickers slogans rather than solutions,” said Monahan.

Green Party finance critic Megan Mitton said Tuesday’s capital estimates didn’t go far enough to make up for spending which she said had be put off in education and transportation.

“I do hope that a significant dent can be made in the deferred maintenance, in the backlog of infrastructure maintenance, whether that be our roads or our schools,” said Mitton.

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