You have to admire Jim Flaherty for the way he just soldiers on. No one could accuse the federal finance minister of not having an ambitious agenda. Nor could we accuse him of not understanding what needs to be done in fiscal policy.

There he was on Nov. 22, before the Oakville Chamber of Commerce, reminding us that he is determined to rid Canada of its now-chronic deficit by 2015 and protect our delicate economic recovery.

He didn’t add the words “come hell or high water’’ as did a former finance minister in 1993 about erasing the previous chronic deficit we faced. But nobody is questioning Flaherty’s sincerity. He aims to do it.

For good measure, he warned the Opposition not to be calling for new spending programs and tax increases lest that jeopardize the economy recovery.

Then, 12 days later, a posse of Tory ministers fanned out across the country to hand out cheques for nine — count ’em, nine — new spending announcements for everything from infrastructure in Toronto and Montreal to pig farming in Saskatchewan.

There is an election in the offing after all, and we all know what the prime minister’s No. 1 policy is. Apparently, it is the finance minister’s job to worry about the economy. Prime Minister Stephen Harper has more important concerns, like staying in power.

But Flaherty does seem to have at least one big-name ally — John Manley, president of the Canadian Council of Chief Executives. Manley has been warning anyone who will listen that a chronic deficit will mean businesses won’t want to invest. The public won’t support fiscal policy once they see their tax dollars doing nothing but servicing public debt. Et cetera.

Manley, of course, is a former Liberal deputy prime minister and finance minister. Now, he is the current finance minister’s major ally and fellow traveller. Ironic isn’t it?

Now, even Flaherty’s marquee accomplishment — a national securities commission — is in jeopardy. New Brunswick and Manitoba are now wavering in their support. Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach seems to have found some support with his Saskatchewan counterpart, Brad Wall, for his idea of a consolidated securities regulator for the western provinces. And, with Gordon Campbell vacating the premier’s office in British Columbia, there is a high possibility B.C. will withdraw its support for a national regulator.

Flaherty is at least the third senior government minister in the past three decades to try for a national securities regulator. He deserves a great deal of credit for getting as far as he has.

Perhaps there would be a different story if the national regulator had been framed as badly needed protection for small investors instead of something for capital markets and an element of the Tories’ law and order agenda.

Whatever happens, Flaherty will be remembered as a good, solid finance minister. But he might have been remembered as a great one. And it’s looking like his opportunity to complete his agenda could be fading.

A recent series of byelections are not looking auspicious for the Tories. While the Tories succeeded in getting Julian Fantino, their mega-profile candidate, elected in Vaughan, next door to Toronto, over a far lesser known Liberal thrown into the fight at the last minute, that seat would have been rather difficult to lose, considering the Tories had an Italy-born candidate in a predominately Italian riding who is also a law-and-order icon.

Fantino won by fewer than 1,000 votes — quite surprising, considering the former Liberal occupant of the riding, Maurizio Bevilacqua, left the federal caucus in a huff after a dispute with the party leader and didn’t help out much.

In Manitoba, the Liberals were able to snatch the long-held New Democratic Party stronghold of Winnipeg North. Historically, when the Liberals gain strength, the NDP loses ground. In addition, the Tories have always needed the NDP’s help to split the centre-left vote.

The Conservatives will have some thinking to do. Do they wait to see if this is just an anomaly? Or does Harper go to see the governor general before the Liberals gain more traction with the voters? Decisions, decisions. One way or the other, the end of this minority Parliament has begun. IE