Another of the major credit rating agencies is taking notice of the Nova Scotia government’s finances.

On Wednesday, Morningstar DBRS issued a commentary saying that the budget tabled this week shows that “deficits are now on track to be materially larger than previously anticipated while debt continues to rise, which will further reduce flexibility within existing credit ratings.

“Although it’s still early in the provincial budget season, Nova Scotia’s deficit is likely to be the widest among all provinces on a Morningstar DBRS-adjusted basis.”

The adjustment by the ratings agency is intended to consider requirements for capital spending and the operating deficit. DBRS says using that calculation equates to a shortfall of $3.9 billion.

Finance Minister John Lohr said he pays close attention to what the credit rating agencies have to say but he’s also confident in his government’s plan and opportunities for the future.

Lohr’s budget includes $300 million in cuts to jobs and grants this year as part of a four-year plan that promises more than $600 million in cuts next year, $750 million in cuts in 2028-29 and more than $900 million in cuts in 2029-30.

“I am confident that this province will prosper economically,” he told reporters.

“I’m confident that everything we are doing will succeed, we’ll see the benefits of [federal] defence spending, that our economy will grow.”

Morningstart DBRS’s rating for the province is A (high) with a stable trend. It’s annual update usually comes in November.

NDP Leader Claudia Chender said the report from DBRS suggests the government has been “the worst fiscal managers that perhaps we’ve seen in the history of this province.”

“They have had the most revenue, have spent the most money and we have almost nothing to show for it,” she told reporters.

Interim Liberal Leader Iain Rankin told reporters that the situation is “a tsunami we saw coming years ago.”

He said past Liberal MLAs predicted this was where the finances were headed based on the spending pattern of Premier Tim Houston’s government, which has included about $1 billion or more in spending each year outside their budget.

“It’s not just about making the budget balanced, it’s about preparing for the future,” said Rankin.

The report from DBRS follows a credit rating downgrade for the province earlier this month by ratings agency S&P.

Lohr said the risk of another downgrade would be an increase to the cost of borrowing.

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