Canada’s fall economic statement spending proves Ottawa is unserious about public finances – Globe and Mail
The 2015 federal election heralded a new approach to federal fiscal policy. Serious was out. Spending only as much as revenue would cover was not cool. Unserious was in. Deficits were the new thing.
That was inevitable during the pandemic. For a time, the government could reasonably claim that hundreds of billions of debt-financed spending were needed responses to sickness and lockdowns.
But the COVID measures are behind us. The 2023 fall economic statement from Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland on Tuesday underlines that the federal government is not serious about managing our money. Yet again, the update has revealed previous fiscal projections as meaningless, with tens of billions of new spending layered on…
Toughest thing is to resist temptation for more spending: former chief economist
Don Drummond, adjunct professor at Queen’s University, former chief economist at TD Bank and a fellow at the C.D. Howe Institute, joins BNN Bloomberg to talk about his expectations for the Federal Liberal’s Fall Fiscal Update. I’m concerned we’re going to see deterioration in the numbers in the spring budget: C.D. Howe CEO
Bill Robson, CEO of C.D. Howe Institute, shares with BNN Bloomberg whether he thinks the federal government is striking the balance between managing fiscal responsibilities and the need to spend on priorities. Drummond, Robson – A Grading Framework for the Upcoming Federal Economic & Fiscal Update
From: Don Drummond and William B.P. Robson To: Fiscal observers Date: November 1, 2023 Re: A Grading Framework for the Upcoming Federal Economic & Fiscal Update The 2023 federal fall Economic Statement is due shortly. This update is intended to foreshadow budget actions and put into the public domain ideas for addressing Canada’s problems. It will be tempting […] The ABCs of Fiscal Accountability: The Report Card for Canada’s Senior Governments, 2023
by William B.P. Robson and Nicholas Dahir Canadians and their elected representatives know too little about how Canada’s senior governments tax and spend. The fiscal impact of COVID-19 has made transparency in government budgets and financial statements more important than ever. As grades ranging from A+ to C– in this report card indicate, some governments […] Malcolm Burrows – AMT and Donations
From: Malcolm Burrows To: The Honourable Chrystia Freeland, Minister of Finance Date: October 4, 2023 Re: AMT and Donations Changes to the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) rates and rules are scheduled to take effect on January 1 and for the first time AMT will apply to charitable donations from high-income individuals. This is poor tax policy that will […] Robson, Laurin – More Inflation Pain: The Insidious Tax Effects
To: The Honourable Chrystia Freeland, Minister of Finance From: William B.P. Robson and Alexandre Laurin Date: September 26, 2023 Re: More Inflation Pain: The Insidious Tax Effects Inflation in Canada has been above the Bank of Canada’s 2-percent target since early 2021. By the time the Bank’s own projections show it returning to 2 percent next August, the purchasing […] Kronick, Robson – Easy Populist Targets Lead to Bad Policy
From: Jeremy M. Kronick and William B.P. Robson To: Finance Ministers and Critics Date: September 19, 2023 Re: Easy Populist Targets Lead to Bad Policy In public policy, as in life generally, we often recognize mistakes by others more easily than we recognize mistakes we make ourselves. Italy just goofed big-time with a windfall tax on its banks, and […] Italy’s bank tax fiasco: Canada must learn lessons on the evils of populist tax policy – Globe and Mail
In public policy, as in life generally, we often recognize mistakes by others more easily than we recognize mistakes we make ourselves. Italy just goofed big-time with a windfall tax on its banks, and Canadians should take notice.
Last month, the coalition government of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni announced a surtax of 40 per cent on the profits of the country’s banks. The announcement triggered a crash in bank stocks – a loss of €10-billion in a single day – and a storm of criticism from investors, economists and elected representatives, including members of the coalition.
Ms. Meloni’s government has since backtracked, capping the amount at 1 per cent of bank assets, and exempting smaller banks. But the…
Jon Johnson – Canada Goes it Alone on a Digital Services Tax – Issues Loom
From: Jon Johnson To: Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland Date: August 31, 2023 Re: Canada Goes it Alone on a Digital Services Tax – Issues Loom The federal government is pushing ahead with a digital services tax (DST) despite agreement among 138 of 143 members of the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework on Base Erosion and Profit-Shifting (BEPS) […] Brian Lewis – No Time for Half Measures: Tax Policy Options to Grow Rental Housing
From: Brian Lewis To: Canada’s ministers of housing Date: August 28, 2023 Re: No Time for Half Measures: Tax Policy Options to Grow Rental Housing A significant shortfall in housing supply is an urgent issue across Canada. The need for rental housing is especially acute, especially because the current shortage and corresponding skyrocketing rents is particularly problematic for […] Inflation is making you pay more taxes: yesterday’s thresholds for today’s dollars – Globe and Mail
There’s been rampant inflation in Canada since early 2021. And while money losing its purchasing power hurts on its own, tax provisions that ignore inflation can multiply the pain for Canadians.
Inflation interacts with various tax provisions, often increasing their bite, with little transparency or legislative oversight. This happens in many ways, notably when prices and incomes rise, but the thresholds for determining tax payable and tax credits do not.
For example, if income tax brackets do not rise with inflation, people whose wages have simply grown with inflation can get inadvertently pushed into higher-taxed categories – even when the real value of their wages has not changed.
Some of these interactions…