Federal Finance Minister Bill Morneau says the Liberals are ``doubling down on a plan with proven results.''

Morneau unveiled his government's fall economic update on Tuesday, and it includes nearly 15-billion dollars in new spending and tax relief over the next five years thanks to unexpected revenue from Canada's resurgent economy.

Morneau also projects shrinking deficits beginning in 2018-19 but offers no route to balanced budgets.

File photo of Candice Bergen

The opposition Conservatives are criticizing the Trudeau government for opening up its wallet for new spending during good economic times without offering a plan to balance the federal books.

Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer says the Liberal fall economic statement should have cut taxes and brought spending under control.

But Morneau reminded his critics that in the last election the Conservatives and NDP had campaigned on balancing the books "at all costs," but he said the Liberal plan to spend more is bearing fruit, evidenced by a growing economy that is among the best in the industrialized world.

Portage-Lisgar MP Candice Bergen says the Liberals "spend more" approach breaks their promise to keep this year's deficit at no more than 10-billion dollars.

"The government was elected with the promise that they were going to run small deficits of $10 million. Today we have found out that figure is going double. This government spends, but they have no way to pay it back, and so they are taxing Canadians, whether it's the small business tax increase, or a threat to tax employee benefits and discounts that employees get, or most recently in which they have been taxing Canadians with diabetes."

Bergen described those taxation policies as "heartless and mean-spirited."

"They have called small businesses and farmers tax cheats and they introduced some tax increases to them, while at the same time, the finance minister has been hiding his assets in Barbados and in numbered companies in Alberta in order to avoid taxes and accountability."

Bergen suggested the extra spending announced on Tuesday is simply a diversion away from some of the issues that have dogged this administration over the past year.

"This is simply an attempt by them to change the channel and hope that they can divert attention from their own massive problems that they've created."