Laurin, Robson – The Public Service Pension Plan Surplus is Not Real
From: Alex Laurin and William B.P. RobsonTo: Canadian fiscal observersDate: December 10, 2024Re: The Public Service Pension Plan Surplus is Not Real Last month, the federal government announced that the Public Service Pension Plan (PSPP) – the plan for its public-service employees – has an “excess surplus.” By the government’s accounting, the plan’s assets exceed […] Ho, Ho, Hold the GST Holiday
The holidays may be about eating to excess, but Ottawa’s “GST Holiday” is little more than “fiscal junk food”. On this episode of the CDHI podcast, Institute President and CEO Bill Robson and Fellow-in-Residence Don Drummond tell our Michael Hainsworth why a two-month tax break isn’t making these public policy elves jolly this holiday season.
Graph of the Week: Business Investment Per Worker Falls 23 Percent Below 2014 Peak
Business investment is essential to productivity, wages and Canadians’ living standards. Alarmingly, investment has lagged growth in the workforce for a decade. Another fall in the third quarter of 2024 left real investment per available worker 23 percent below its 2014 peak. A two-month GST “holiday” is the latest example of fiscal policies that boost […] Robson, Drummond – Junk Fiscal Policy Can Cost More than Mere Billions
From: William B.P. Robson and Don DrummondTo: Canadian taxpayersDate: December 05, 2024Re: Junk Fiscal Policy Can Cost More than Mere Billions Canadian governments are loudly zealous about protecting us from potentially addictive stuff that could hurt our physical and mental health – think of junk food, booze and other drugs, or misinformation and other online […] Permanently Higher Federal Spending Threatens GST Hike: C.D. Howe Institute Fiscal & Tax Working Group
November 27, 2020 – A GST hike could be looming on the horizon if Ottawa starts down the road of permanent post-pandemic spending increases, warns a new report from the C.D. Howe Institute.
The Fiscal and Tax Working Group stressed that now is not the time for permanent post-pandemic spending increases or matching tax increases. However, if Canadians want to see a significant increase in the level of ongoing program spending post-pandemic, they must be aware that it will require an increase in taxes across the income spectrum to be fiscally sustainable.
The group of experts from the private sector and academia held their third and fourth meetings on October 6, 2020, and November 11, 2020. The group calculated that…
William Robson on BNN Bloomberg – GST Holiday Would be a ‘Short-Term High’ for Canadians
William B.P. Robson, President and CEO of the C.D. Howe Institute, warns Ottawa’s proposed GST break may bring temporary relief to Canadians but could be harmful long-term.
Brian Lewis – Tis the Season for Gimmicky Economic Policy
From: Brian Lewis To: Concerned Canadians Date: November 26, 2024 Re: Tis the Season for Gimmicky Economic Policy Hot on the heels of Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s $200 “taxpayer rebate,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has unveiled a time-limited sales tax break on select holiday wares, followed by a $250 “Working Canadians Rebate.” At first glance, these may seem […] William Robson and Don Drummond – GST holiday feeds Canada’s addiction to populist junk fiscal policy
Published in The Globe and Mail.
Canadian governments are loudly zealous about protecting us from potentially addictive stuff that could hurt our physical and mental health – think of junk food, booze and other drugs, or misinformation and other online “harms.” Yet they themselves are pushing fiscal junk. The federal government’s latest – a goods and services tax holiday from mid-December to mid-February, 2025, and a $250 handout to everyone with earned income under $150,000 – is yet another feel-good move that undermines our fiscal and economic health.
As with the Ontario government’s recent pledge of a $200 handout for its taxpayers, one big question is: Will the bribe buy the government a bounce in the polls? If…
Tingting Zhang – Canada’s Housing Crisis: A Growing Challenge for Vulnerable Populations
To: Canadians concerned about housingFrom: Tingting ZhangDate: November 22, 2024Re: Canada’s Housing Crisis: A Growing Challenge for Vulnerable Populations The dream of a safe, affordable place to call home is slipping away for millions of Canadians. As rents soar and waitlists for social housing stretch for years, Canada faces an unprecedented housing crisis that disproportionately […] Fiscal Accountability by the Letters: The Report Card for Canada’s Senior Governments, 2024
Canadians and their elected representatives know too little about how Canada’s federal, provincial and territorial governments tax and spend. The explosion of spending and debt since the COVID-19 pandemic has made transparency in government budgets and financial statements, and the information they should reveal about governments’ capacity to deliver public services, more important than […] Laurin, Dahir – The Unreliability of Capital Gains Tax Revenue Projections: A Wake-Up Call
From: Alexandre Laurin and Nick Dahir To: Tax observersDate: November 13, 2024Re: The Unreliability of Capital Gains Tax Revenue Projections: A Wake-Up Call Recent data from Statistics Canada highlight the volatility of capital gains realizations, casting doubt on the reliability of projected revenues from the recent capital gains tax hike – a point we emphasized in […] Another Day Older and Deeper in Debt with Parisa Mahboubi and Bill Robson
When it comes to Canada’s finances, the country is aging in more ways than one. With a shrinking workforce, government revenue growth slowing, and costs for healthcare, pensions, and seniors benefits escalating. This issue disproportionately affects provincial governments, who bear the brunt of healthcare spending.
In the recent C.D. Howe Institute commentary “Another Day Older and Deeper in Debt: The Fiscal Implications of Demographic Change for Ottawa and the Provinces,” we learn that over the next four decades governments face an implicit $2 trillion liability because of these demographic changes.
Michael Hainsworth talks to commentary authors Parisa Mahboubi and Bill Robson about their research, their conclusions, and the possible solutions to problems caused by this aging trend.