OTTAWA — Finance Minister Ralph Goodale is expected to deliver some broad hints of new tax policies that are in the works when he delivers his fiscal update Nov. 14.

Goodale's mid-year statement of Ottawa's books and its outlook for the economy will be delivered to the all-party Common's finance committee.

Several reports have suggested the minister plans sizable tax cuts in his next budget, likely to be delivered early next year.

It's expected that a federal election will be called soon after.

The statement is expected to come one day before the federal Conservatives have an opportunity to call a confidence motion in the Commons designed to bring down the minority Liberals.

So the fiscal statement will give Goodale a forum to talk about the expected size of the federal surplus in the current fiscal year and what the Liberals intend to do with it.

Private-sector forecasters have predicted a budget surplus as large as $12 billion in fiscal 2005-06.

That would leave the Liberals plenty of room to trim taxes and increase spending, especially on education and skills training.

All that would be presented as part of a productivity agenda that Goodale has been promoting as essential to boost living standards.