Lawrence Herman – The Unsettling Us-china Trade Armistice
From: Lawrence Herman To: Canadians concerned about trade Date: February 12, 2020 Re: The Unsettling US-China Trade Armistice International business breathed a sigh of relief last month with the signing of the U.S.-China Phase 1 trade deal, overlooking the fact this is an armistice, not a peace treaty. Even a short-term downing of arms, if it leads to the […] Martin Eichenbaum – Going Unconventional On Fiscal Policy As A Recession-fighting Tool
From: Martin Eichenbaum To: Finance Minister Bill Morneau Date: February 11, 2020 Re: Going Unconventional on Fiscal Policy as a Recession-Fighting Tool Canada and the rest of the developed world have entered an era of low interest rates and sluggish growth. We should expect interest rates to remain low by historical standards when the next recession occurs. Since the […] Robert Siddall – Assessing Climate Change Impacts On P3s
From: Robert Siddall To: Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Environment and Climate Change, and Bill Morneau, Minister of Finance Date: February 10, 2020 Re: Assessing Climate Change Impacts on P3s Public-private partnerships succeed when both parties can adequately identify and quantify risks and then effectively allocate them to the party best suited to manage these risks. Climate change will affect […] Grant Bishop – Boon Or Bane? The Mandated Broadband And Wireless Access Debate
From: Grant Bishop To: The Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry Date: February 6, 2020 Re: Boon or bane? The mandated broadband and wireless access debate Two sets of present proceedings raise questions about whether Canada’s telecommunications regulator will enhance or impair market efficiency by mandating access to telecommunications facilities – specifically, to broadband and […] Talk is Cheaper: Canadian Wireless Prices on a Swift Decline
In the recent Mandate Letter, the Prime Minister directed the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry to “reduce the average cost of cellular phone bills in Canada by 25 percent” and “expand mobile virtual network operators (MVNO) in the market.” MVNOs do not operate wireless facilities themselves but purchase access from operators of wireless facilities that […] Rosalie Wyonch – Nudging Health: The Good, The Bad And The Ugly
From: Rosalie Wyonch To: Canada’s health system administrators Date: February 5, 2020 Subject: Nudging Health: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly Behavioural “nudges” can influence the choices that individuals and healthcare professionals make. A nudge changes the context of decision-making to subtly influence resulting choices. In healthcare, they can encourage appropriate prescribing practices and influence patients to better […] Regulations Alone Won’t Fix Alberta’s Potential Oil-and-gas Well Crisis – Globe And Mail Op-ed
Old or spent oil and gas wells have accrued across Alberta in the thousands. The environmental risk in the province is high and rising, and the financial liabilities are, too: Analysis by the C.D. Howe Institute in 2017 showed that the public cost could be in the billions of dollars if companies designated as “financially fragile” by the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) simply abandoned their wells for taxpayers to clean up – an extreme scenario that is not beyond contemplation.
So amid reports about budget cuts, layoffs and alleged mismanagement on the part of the AER’s former CEO, the regulator has faced increasing pressure to change its one-size-fits-all rules, which use the valuations of operators…
Water in the Wine? Monetary Policy and the Impact of Non-bank Financial Intermediaries
February 4, 2020 – The rapid growth of the non-bank financial intermediation sector, formerly called shadow banking, appears to dilute monetary policy effectiveness in Canada and poses a risk to financial stability, according to a new report from the C.D. Howe Institute. In “Water in the Wine? Monetary Policy and the Impact of Non-bank Financial […] Out Of The Shadows: Rapid Growth Of Upstart Financial Sector Diluting Monetary Policy
The rapid growth of the non-bank financial intermediation sector, formerly called shadow banking, appears to dilute monetary policy effectiveness in Canada and poses a risk to financial stability, according to a new report from the C.D. Howe Institute. In “Water in the…Jack Mintz – The Little-noticed Tax Deductibility Attack On Corporations
From: Jack Mintz To: Canadians concerned about investment Date: February 4, 2020 Re: The little-noticed tax deductibility attack on corporations An intriguing Liberal party platform promise to limit corporate interest deductibility seems set to return as we get closer to this spring’s federal budget. Even though making corporations pay more tax is politically popular, they account for the lion’s […] Jeremy Kronick on BNN – Growth in Non-bank Financial Intermediaries Could Weaken Monetary Policy
Jeremy Kronick, Associate Director of Research at the C.D. Howe Institute, joins BNN Bloomberg to discuss the rapid growth of the non-bank financial intermediation sector and its possible impact on the Bank of Canada’s monetary policy use.
John D. Murray – Central Banks and the Future of Money
From: John D. Murray To: Canadian financial regulators Date: January 31, 2020 Subject: Central Banks and the Future of Money Central banks around the world are now giving serious consideration to the pros and cons of making central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) available to the general public. While the consensus view in earlier periods seemed to be that any […]