Published in the Financial Post.
Ottawa’s latest climate initiative – a hard cap on oil and gas emissions – is like using an excavator to plant flowers. It’s unnecessary, expensive and likely to do more harm than good. With more than 70 federal climate policies already in place, adding yet another layer of regulation is clearly unnecessary. And this one poses serious risks to Canada’s economy.
Despite having already imposed several climate policies on the oil and gas sector, the government doggedly plans to implement yet another: a sector-specific cap-and-trade system in which a fixed maximum number of emissions will be traded. The goal is to reduce 2030 emissions down to 35 percent below 2019 levels and then align the…
Published in The Hill Times.
It’s a good start: on Aug. 27, the federal government announced that “the Honourable Anita Anand, President of Treasury Board, will immediately set up a working group to examine productivity and inform the government’s economic plan. The working group will address barriers to achieving greater efficiencies for businesses so we can help increase productivity across the country.” Anand highlighted restrictions on internal trade and overly burdensome regulations as critical, closely linked areas that policymakers must address.
The minister is right. However, for this working group to provide real value for Canadians, we need it to produce actionable ideas that can be swiftly implemented—and not just…
Published in the Financial Post.
April’s federal budget announced significant changes to capital gains taxes, projecting an additional $10.6 billion in corporate income tax (CIT) and $8.8 billion in personal income tax (PIT) over the next five years. But our recent analysis shows these estimates are highly uncertain and rest on a number of assumptions that may not hold true. As Parliament considers enshrining these tax changes into law, legislators should look beyond projected revenues and focus on ensuring that tax policy supports the healthy and dynamic economy Canadians need.
Effective June 25, the capital gains inclusion rate for corporations rose from one-half to two-thirds. For individual taxpayers, only gains…
