Council Reports

April 2, 2020 – At the second meeting of the C.D. Howe Institute Crisis Working Group on Business Continuity and Trade on Tuesday, March 31, the group underscored the importance of government action to safeguard supply chains for critical goods – and address potential bottlenecks in the transport of goods by truck domestically and internationally.

The group of industry experts and economists, co-chaired by Dwight Duncan, Senior Strategic Advisor at McMillan LLP and former Ontario Minister of Finance, and Jeanette Patell, Vice-President of Government Affairs and Policy for GE Canada, urged governments to work closely with industry to address bottlenecks, but advised caution with regards to direct intervention or taking over supply…

April 1, 2020 - The C.D. Howe Institute’s Monetary and Financial Measures Working Group, supported by a group of financial market experts, and co-chaired by former Governor of the Bank of Canada David Dodge and former Deputy Superintendent of OSFI Mark Zelmer, held its second meeting on Monday, March 30, 2020. 

The working group agreed that, while there is a need for governments and central banks to monitor the effect of current crisis measures on debt and potential future inflation, these concerns are not a short-run issue and should not come at the expense of the immediate need for large-scale fiscal stimulus. To that end, the Monetary and Financial Measures Working Group recommends the following:

April 1, 2020 - The Public Health and Emergency Measures crisis working group is supported by a group of health academics, professionals and business leaders and chaired by Janet Davidson, Chair of the Canadian Institute for Health Information's Board of Directors, former Alberta Deputy Minister of Health, and C.D. Howe Institute Senior Fellow. The working group’s first meeting was held March 27, 2020. 

The presence of COVID-19 in communities, unlike SARS where cases were primarily concentrated in a hospital setting, broadens the scope of treatment and adds complexity to managing the spread of disease. The challenge of ensuring adequate quantities of medicines and testing reagents, for instance, has been compounded by border…

March 27, 2020 - The C.D. Howe Institute has established an expert crisis working group for household income and credit support, chaired by Michael Horgan, Senior Advisor at Bennett Jones LLP and former Deputy Minister of Finance, Government of Canada. The group’s first meeting was held on Wednesday, March 25, 2020 to identify and prioritize key risks for households during the crisis, and consider policy options and recommendations. 

The working group calls for governments to help businesses, not-for-profits and individuals pay their bills and stay afloat during the crisis. Financial supports are particularly needed for small businesses and individuals in industries that have experienced massive layoffs, including the…

March 26, 2020 – In order to help Canadian governments confront the public health and economic crisis resulting from the spread of the COVID-19 virus, the C.D. Howe Institute has established a working group to address challenges for business continuity and trade. The group, co-chaired by Dwight Duncan, Senior Strategic Advisor at McMillan LLP and former Ontario Minister of Finance, and Jeanette Patell, Vice-President of Government Affairs and Policy for GE Canada, held its first meeting on March 24, 2020.

In this meeting, the group of economists and industry experts recommended urgent and immediate implementation of measures by Canada’s federal government to ensure continuity for businesses and not-for-profits – and preserve…