Published in The Globe and Mail. Many Canadians may still have an image of Canada as a country aware that governments cannot spend and borrow without limit. They should not. With the economy operating near capacity and growth in productive capacity weak, governments continue to run deficits and project rising debt ratios, undermining growth and […]
23 avril 2026 – Sans mesures audacieuses, la dette nette combinée des gouvernements fédéral et provinciaux devrait avoisiner 82 % du PIB d’ici 2028-2029 – bien au-dessus des niveaux d’avant la pandémie. Le Canada se dirige vers une crise budgétaire. Pourtant, les décideurs politiques, enclins à recourir à des artifices budgétaires comme la récente suspension […]
April 23, 2026 – Without bold action, combined federal and provincial net debt is projected to approach 82 percent of GDP by 2028/29 – far above pre-pandemic levels. Canada is drifting toward a fiscal crisis. Yet policymakers, prone to fiscal gimmicks like the recent debt-financed fuel tax suspension, appear unwilling to act, according to a […]
by Don Drummond, William B.P. Robson and Alexandre Laurin Canada can no longer pride itself on its fiscal discipline. With the economy operating near capacity and growth in productive capacity weak, governments continue to run deficits and project rising debt ratios, undermining growth and living standards rather than supporting them. Government projections understate the risks. […]
From: Don Drummond and Parisa Mahboubi To: Fiscal and monetary policy decision-makers Date: April 22, 2026 Re: Canada’s Economy Is Growing Far Slower Than Ottawa Thinks Canada’s official economic forecasters are projecting growth that may exceed what its new demographic reality can support. With a federal Economic Statement imminent and the Bank of Canada’s next Monetary […]
Trump may waver on NATO, but Canada’s 5% commitment isn’t going anywhere – and it could cost $150 billion. The question is: how do we pay for it? Colin Busby and Nicholas Dahir lay out a path forward that avoids piling on debt. Read the report: https://cdhowe.org/publication/a-steep-climb-financing-canadas-nato-commitment-while-maintaining-fiscal-discipline/
Trump may waver on NATO, but Canada’s 5% commitment isn’t going anywhere – and it could cost $150 billion. The question is: how do we pay for it? Colin Busby and Nicholas Dahir lay out a path forward that avoids piling on debt. Read the report: https://cdhowe.org/publication/a-steep-climb-financing-canadas-nato-commitment-while-maintaining-fiscal-discipline/
From: Brain LewisTo: Federal spending observersDate: March 30, 2026 Re: A New Parliamentary Budget Officer and a Chance for Renewal The federal government has nominated a new Parliamentary Budget Officer. That appointment, if confirmed, should do more than fill a long-vacant leadership role – it should mark the start of a broader renewal for the office itself. Annette Ryan, a long-time federal public servant […]
From: John Lester and Benoît Robidoux To: Government spending watchers Date: March 27, 2026 Re: Getting Value for Money From Government Spending Getting value for the money they spend should always be top-of-mind for governments. And with defence and defence-related spending ramping up to 5 percent of GDP over the next decade, it becomes mission-critical. Other spending will have to be scaled back, making robust value for money (VFM) evidence essential to support decision makers. The federal government has started […]
From: Don DrummondTo: Ontario Economics and Education Policy Watchers Date: March 6, 2026Re: Ontario Stops Deepening its Universities’ Financial Pit In February 2026, the Ontario Government announced it was “investing $6.4 billion to support (the) postsecondary sector’s long-term success and sustainability” to produce “one of the most competitive workforces in the G7” and “world-class research.” […]
From: Jerome Gessaroli To: Legislature watchersDate: January 21, 2026Re: The High Cost of Misunderstanding Economics in Policy Decisions Imagine if the federal government passed a law requiring producers to dispose of nutritious food that could otherwise feed large numbers of Canadians. You might assume such a policy would never be permitted, particularly when roughly one […]
From: Nick Dahir and William B.P. Robson To: Federal budget watchersDate: December 22, 2025Re: Slimmer Budgets, Please, and Put the Numbers Up Front Initial buzz about last month’s supposedly “generational” federal budget marking a decisive break from the growth-suppressing fiscal policies of the recent past has now faded. In retrospect, far too much of the […]
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Published in The Globe and Mail. Many Canadians may still have an image of Canada as a country aware that governments cannot spend and borrow without limit. They should not. With the economy operating near capacity and growth in productive capacity weak, governments continue to run deficits and project rising debt ratios, undermining growth and […] 
23 avril 2026 – Sans mesures audacieuses, la dette nette combinée des gouvernements fédéral et provinciaux devrait avoisiner 82 % du PIB d’ici 2028-2029 – bien au-dessus des niveaux d’avant la pandémie. Le Canada se dirige vers une crise budgétaire. Pourtant, les décideurs politiques, enclins à recourir à des artifices budgétaires comme la récente suspension […] 
April 23, 2026 – Without bold action, combined federal and provincial net debt is projected to approach 82 percent of GDP by 2028/29 – far above pre-pandemic levels. Canada is drifting toward a fiscal crisis. Yet policymakers, prone to fiscal gimmicks like the recent debt-financed fuel tax suspension, appear unwilling to act, according to a […] 
From: Don Drummond and Parisa Mahboubi To: Fiscal and monetary policy decision-makers Date: April 22, 2026 Re: Canada’s Economy Is Growing Far Slower Than Ottawa Thinks Canada’s official economic forecasters are projecting growth that may exceed what its new demographic reality can support. With a federal Economic Statement imminent and the Bank of Canada’s next Monetary […] 
Trump may waver on NATO, but Canada’s 5% commitment isn’t going anywhere – and it could cost $150 billion. The question is: how do we pay for it? Colin Busby and Nicholas Dahir lay out a path forward that avoids piling on debt. Read the report: https://cdhowe.org/publication/a-steep-climb-financing-canadas-nato-commitment-while-maintaining-fiscal-discipline/ 
From: Brain LewisTo: Federal spending observersDate: March 30, 2026 Re: A New Parliamentary Budget Officer and a Chance for Renewal The federal government has nominated a new Parliamentary Budget Officer. That appointment, if confirmed, should do more than fill a long-vacant leadership role – it should mark the start of a broader renewal for the office itself. Annette Ryan, a long-time federal public servant […] 
From: John Lester and Benoît Robidoux To: Government spending watchers Date: March 27, 2026 Re: Getting Value for Money From Government Spending Getting value for the money they spend should always be top-of-mind for governments. And with defence and defence-related spending ramping up to 5 percent of GDP over the next decade, it becomes mission-critical. Other spending will have to be scaled back, making robust value for money (VFM) evidence essential to support decision makers. The federal government has started […] 
From: Don DrummondTo: Ontario Economics and Education Policy Watchers Date: March 6, 2026Re: Ontario Stops Deepening its Universities’ Financial Pit In February 2026, the Ontario Government announced it was “investing $6.4 billion to support (the) postsecondary sector’s long-term success and sustainability” to produce “one of the most competitive workforces in the G7” and “world-class research.” […] 
From: Jerome Gessaroli To: Legislature watchersDate: January 21, 2026Re: The High Cost of Misunderstanding Economics in Policy Decisions Imagine if the federal government passed a law requiring producers to dispose of nutritious food that could otherwise feed large numbers of Canadians. You might assume such a policy would never be permitted, particularly when roughly one […] 
From: Nick Dahir and William B.P. Robson To: Federal budget watchersDate: December 22, 2025Re: Slimmer Budgets, Please, and Put the Numbers Up Front Initial buzz about last month’s supposedly “generational” federal budget marking a decisive break from the growth-suppressing fiscal policies of the recent past has now faded. In retrospect, far too much of the […]