The 2023 fall economic statement projected large deficits through 2028-29 and a net debt-to-GDP ratio that rises in 2024-25 and then declines only slightly, remaining well above the prepandemic level through 2028-29. Interest payments eat up almost 14 per cent of revenue. The 2024 budget must correct this imprudent treatment of risk.
Debt’s risk is lost opportunity. When servicing costs rise, more tax dollars have to go toward financing the debt, leaving less room for more meaningful expenditure.
The federal government justified the deficits and debt by showing the net debt-to-GDP ratio declining through 2055-56. This is not credible.
First, high debt produces economic costs, even if sustainable under the narrow…
The World Trade Organization, the multilateral body that oversees the global trading system, is not top of mind for the business community. But it should be. The WTO’s current diminished state affects international commerce generally. Without universally respected rules, uncertainty prevails, and uncertainty raises businesses’ costs. Without the multilateral disciplines the WTO provides, a quilt of different agreements will impose a bewildering set of differing commercial requirements in different nations.
The collapse of the Doha Round negotiations in 2011 was a dire setback for the WTO. Since then it has been unable to play a meaningful role in meeting today’s challenging trade issues, including carbon-free goods, the…
Surging immigration numbers are top-of-mind for Canadians. But as we reconsider targets for newcomers and address pain points such as housing, we also need to pay attention to talent retention.
Tens of thousands of people leave Canada every year, many of them talented and entrepreneurial people we will miss. Importantly, a significant fraction are themselves immigrants, which may mean we are missing an opportunity to boost Canada’s long-term growth and prosperity.
A recent study by Statistics Canada, using a data set that combines detailed immigration department data with a Canada Revenue Agency database, highlights the significant phenomenon of emigration among immigrants in Canada. The overall…
