Mikal Skuterud – Who’s Working in Canada? Why We Don’t Really Know
From: Mikal Skuterud To: Labour Market Observers Date: September 15, 2023 Re: Who’s Working in Canada? Why We Don’t Really Know In 2022, Canada’s population grew by more than 1 million people for the first time in its history. Although Ottawa’s ambitious targets for new permanent residents receive much attention, the reality is that 58 percent of 2022’s record-breaking […] Charles DeLand – Time to Come Clean on Going Green
To: Canada’s political class From: Charles DeLand Date: September 14, 2023 Re: Time to Come Clean on Going Green Ottawa’s policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions will cost Canadians both directly and indirectly. In 2021, the Royal Bank estimated that reaching net-zero emissions by 2050 could cost as much as $2 trillion – almost three-quarters of last year’s GDP. We will also need […] The 1 Million Difference
The number of temporary residents (TR) working in Canada is growing; however, policymakers are in the dark due to a large difference in data estimates. Information from Statistics Canada’s Labour Force Survey (LFS) and Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) does not match up on the labour supply contribution of Canada’s TR population – workers, […] How we can actually achieve national pharmacare – Hill Times Op-Ed
Nothing is more dangerous than an idea.
Émile Chartier is credited with those words or similar, finishing with “…when it’s the only one we have.”
Canada has tried for nearly 80 years to implement “national pharmacare”—defined here as a fully public national drug insurance plan—without success. We should ask why.
One reason is an unrelenting insistence that only a fully public plan will work. Fifty years ago that may have been true. When Ottawa didn’t act, we found an alternative: provinces and employers stepped in.
Between us and a good-quality universal drug insurance plan lie four problems, all of which matter right now. The Liberal-NDP supply-and-confidence agreement promises…
Ambler and Kronick – In Praise of the Pause
From: Steve Ambler and Jeremy M. Kronick To: Monetary Policy Observers Date: September 12, 2023 Re: In Praise of the Pause The Bank of Canada held its policy rate at 5 percent last week – a smart move. Although the Bank’s governing council may have made its decision ahead of the weak GDP the week before, those numbers underlined the reasons to hold. […]Glen Hodgson – Fires and Floods: It’s Time for Some Insurance Plans
From: Glen Hodgson To: Canadian Climate Watchers Date: September 11, 2023 Re: Fires and Floods: It’s Time for Some Insurance Plans Fires, floods and severe storms have hit across the country, with climate change the probable cause. These severe events have destroyed housing, commercial property and infrastructure with a lengthy recovery period ahead. Insured and uninsured losses will […] Broken Spending Estimates with Bill Robson and Neil Moss
You wouldn’t let your contractor go over budget without asking why. So why should we give Ottawa a pass? Neil Moss of The Hill Times joins C.D. Howe Institute CEO Bill Robson and host Michael Hainsworth to discuss why MPs weren’t keeping an eye on spending during the pandemic – or today.
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…
Miscounting of temporary residents working in Canada: C.D. Howe Institute
Mikal Skuterud, professor at department of economics at University of Waterloo, and director at Canadian Labour Economics Forum, joined BNN Bloomberg to discuss his recent report which outlines the miscounting of non-permanent residents working in Canada and where the bias in count may be coming from.
Canada in the Dark about Temporary Residents in the Workforce
Policymakers are in the dark when it comes to dealing with the growing number of temporary residents in Canada. The large difference in estimates by Statistics Canada’s Labour Force Survey (LFS) and Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada’s (IRCC) data on Canada’s…Francke, Hans, Korevaar and van Bekkum – Buy-to-Live vs. Buy-to-Let: The Impact of Real Estate Investors on Housing Costs and Neighborhoods
To: The Hon. Sean Fraser, Minister of Housing Infrastructure and Communities of Canada cc: The National Housing Council From: Marc Francke, Lianne Hans, Matthijs Korevaar, and Sjoerd van Bekkum Date: September 7, 2023 Re: Buy-to-Live vs. Buy-to-Let: The Impact of Real Estate Investors on Housing Costs and Neighborhoods In many places across the world, housing […]Reducing emissions will cost. Governments need to admit that – Financial Post
Ottawa’s policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions will cost Canadians, both directly and indirectly. In 2021, the Royal Bank estimated that reaching net-zero emissions by 2050 could cost as much as $2 trillion — which is almost three-quarters of last year’s entire GDP. We will also need to spend more to protect against a changing climate. To pay for all this, Canada badly needs economic growth.
Though virtually all governments and opposition parties twist themselves into knots to avoid saying it, trying to prevent climate change will cause economic pain. Yes, there will be new “sustainable” jobs and businesses, but the net impact will almost surely be negative. Assigning a price, by tax or regulation, to…