The Canadian Press

New Brunswick has recorded a $754-million deficit for the 2009-10 fiscal year, the highest deficit in the province’s history.

The provincial government tabled an $8-billion budget Tuesday for 2010-11 with no expectation to get out of the red ink until at least 2014.

The government is also forecasting a deficit of $749 million for the next fiscal year.

The provincial net debt is expected to grow to $9.5 billion by 2011 — also a record — meaning the share of the debt for every man, woman and child in New Brunswick would be about $12,700.

The budget, delivered three months earlier than it is usually, is Liberal Premier Shawn Graham’s last before a provincial election in September.

Graham has denied the expedited budget is an attempt to distance a deficit from the election, saying he needs to act now to continue efforts to help the province weather the recession.

Finance Minister Greg Byrne said while the provincial labour market performed better than expected this year, New Brunswick’s manufacturing and export sectors have been hard hit by the weakness in the American economy and lower world prices for forest, energy and mining projects.

Byrne said the province faced a number of spending increases for 2009-10, including $71 million in the Department of Health for new contracts with doctors, and the swine flu vaccine program.

He said the economy is expected to return to growth in 2010, but at a modest pace.

“The recovery is expected to be slow and gradual,” he said.

“Growth in the medium-term will be hurt by a lack of major projects on the horizon, especially with the completion of the LNG terminal and pipeline in 2009 and the $8-billion (Irving) refinery project not proceeding at this time.”

Health care takes the biggest slice of the budget at more than $2.4 billion.

The government also announced $896 million in capital projects including new schools, hospital upgrades and highway construction.

University tuition fees are being frozen for the third straight year, while community college students will have their tuition fees frozen for the fifth consecutive year.