Canada’s Competition Act Must Remain Effects-Based: Competition Policy Council
Canada’s Competition Act must remain effects-based, and the Standing Committee on Finance must exercise caution reviewing the legal test for abuse of dominance, according to a new Communiqué from the C.D. Howe Institute’s Competition Policy Council. In its…Werner Antweiler – Unpacking the Real Sources of Rising Food Prices
From: Werner Antweiler To: Food price observers Date: November 27, 2023 Re: Unpacking the Real Sources of Rising Food Prices Consumers are complaining about high food prices, and indeed food prices have risen sharply since the end of the pandemic. Politicians have taken up the complaints. Liberals in Parliament have singled out record profits of grocery chains and the lack of […] Canada’s worst fiscal crisis in generations is brewing – Full Comment
The financial trouble the Trudeau Liberals have put Canada in looks disturbingly unlike previous debt and deficit hangovers, as William Robson tells Brian Lilley this week. The losses Ottawa has pushed onto the Bank of Canada are choking off desperately needed income, explains Robson, president and CEO of the C.D. Howe Institute. Wages are losing […]Nuclear power and LNG are key to a low-carbon future – Financial Post Op-Ed
The national conversation about net-zero has tended to focus on renewable forms of energy, such as wind and solar, both of which have important roles to play in future. But nuclear energy and liquefied natural gas (LNG) have also emerged as pragmatic drivers on the road toward a low-carbon future. Each has its own unique advantages.
Nuclear stands out as a reliable source of base-load electricity. Unlike wind and solar installations, which produce much less energy than their rated capacities when, respectively, the wind isn’t blowing or the sun shining, nuclear reactors can operate more or less indefinitely at close to capacity output. That ensures a stable energy supply, offsetting the intermittency associated…
Mario Polèse – Quebec’s soft rent control. A delicate balancing act.
From: Mario Polèse To: Housing Observers Date: November 24, 2023 Re: Quebec’s soft rent control. A delicate balancing act. Aside from serial bombing, the most efficient technique for destroying a city is rent control, Swedish economist Assar Lindbeck once famously said. If rents are capped, why invest in new houses or maintain older ones if costs cannot be […]Capital Gains and Charitable Donations: The Silent Targets of Federal AMT Reforms
This E-Brief analyzes the expected fiscal and behavioural consequences of the significant reforms proposed for the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) in the 2023 federal budget. The 2023 budget asserts that the “AMT will more precisely target the very wealthy.” Our findings indicate that the new AMT regime will primarily fall on individuals who report occasional […] Bob Baldwin – How to Resolve the Alberta Pension Plan
From: Bob Baldwin To: Canada Pension Plan Observers Date: November 20, 2023 Re: How to Resolve the Alberta Pension Issue Many commentators, including the prime minister and leader of the opposition, have now weighed in on the downsides of Alberta withdrawing from the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and creating its own Alberta Pension Plan (APP). The Alberta […]Charities, Capital Gains Casualties of Ottawa’s “Minimum Tax” Reforms
The federal government’s new proposed Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) reforms would create disadvantages for charities and hit large capital gains hard, according to a new C.D. Howe Institute report. In “Capital Gains and Charitable Donations: The Silent Targets of…Travis Toews – In Defence of Alberta’s Pension Report
From: Travis Toews To: Canada Pension Plan Observers Date: November 23, 2023 Re: In Defence of Alberta’s Pension Report Since the release of the Alberta Pension Plan report, I’ve read with interest the steady stream of commentary and opinion and, while there have been some thoughtful pieces, much of it has been ill-informed and misleading. Doubt has been cast on […]William B.P. Robson – High Immigration and Low Investment Won’t Boost Living Standards
From: William B.P. Robson To: Federal Economic Ministers Date: November 22, 2023 Re: High Immigration and Low Investment Won’t Boost Living Standards Immigration is driving a historic surge in Canada’s population. At the same time, Canadian wages and living standards are stagnant. That is a bad combination – and, worse, it is not a coincidence. Here’s the link: Business […] 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…
It would do good if federal government made more land available: C.D. Howe CEO on housing strategy
Bill Robson, CEO of C.D. Howe Institute, discusses with BNN Bloomberg why he feels the current housing challenges could threaten views on immigration.