The Verdict on Vacant Home Taxes
The verdict is in: Vacant home taxes can improve housing availability, but not affordability, according to a new C.D. Howe Institute report. In “Ripple Effects: The Impact of an Empty-Homes Tax on Canada’s Housing Market,” authors Gherardo Gennaro Caracciolo and Enrico…Barry Gros – Ontario Finally Joins the Target Benefit Pension Party
To: Ontario Pension Observers From: Barry Gros Date: August 1, 2024 Re: Ontario Finally Joins the Target Benefit Pension Party Ontario’s journey towards target benefit pension regulation is coming to a close. The Ministry of Finance recently released draft regulations for technical review with an effective date of January 1, 2025, winding up a process begun last year. […] Ripple Effects: The Impact of an Empty-Homes Tax on the Housing Market
The Canadian housing market is experiencing an unprecedented crisis. One solution being explored is the adoption of demand-side measures like Vancouver’s 2017 empty-homes tax. This E-Brief evaluates the tax’s impact on housing affordability and availability, helping policymakers balance efficient property use with ensuring a steady supply of new homes. We use the difference-in-difference (DID) method […] Rosalie Wyonch – Addressing Canada’s Bed-Blocker Problem
To: Healthcare Observers From: Rosalie Wyonch Date: July 31, 2024 Re: Addressing Canada’s Bed-Blocker Problem Canadian hospitals are capacity-constrained and expensive and therefore not the best care setting for patients who no longer need acute care and the bed that comes with it. Yet these “alternate level care” (ALC) patients accounted for 17 percent of all acute-care bed days […] Kronick, Ambler – There’s Every Reason to Keep Going with Rate Cuts
To: Interest Rate Watchers From: Jeremy M. Kronick and Steve Ambler Date: July 30, 2024 Re: There’s Every Reason to Keep Going with Rate Cuts When headline inflation increased to 2.9 percent in May, up from 2.7 percent in April, there was much speculation that the Bank of Canada would pause its rate cuts. However, inflation ticked back down […] The Good, the Bad and the Unnecessary: A Scorecard for Financial Regulations in Canada
Canada’s regulatory burden has increased significantly over the past decade, resulting in higher compliance costs and decreased competitiveness. This paper evaluates whether Canadian financial regulators employ a sound approach. There is a need for a balanced approach that ensures regulations address financial stability and consumer protection while fostering innovation and market efficiency. The analysis includes […] Charles DeLand – Want the best climate policy? Let the market decide
Published in The Globe and Mail.
The federal government and many provinces are working toward reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions with Ottawa committing to achieving a “net-zero” GHG economy by 2050. However, governments need to proceed more cautiously with two of their key policy levers – zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) and heat pumps – and let consumers lead the way.
Reducing emissions comes at an economic cost. The trick is to ensure Canadians still have the products and services they need while minimizing the cost of each GHG tonne not emitted. This is not an easy task in a complex, energy-intensive economy in which Canadians feel their budgets are stretched. Including upfront and continuing costs, ZEVs and heat…
Financial Sector Rules Need Careful Weeding
Canadian financial sector rules need careful weeding to safeguard the system and market stakeholders, while creating conditions for innovation and efficiency, according to a new C.D. Howe Institute report. In “The Good, the Bad and the Unnecessary: A Scorecard for…Graph of the Week: The Top 10 Diagnoses Hospitalization Rate
Introducing Graph of the Week, a new series from the C.D. Howe Institute’s Graphic Intelligence that presents valuable and easily digestible data. Each Monday we will unveil one new captivating chart or graph with interesting insights, explaining it in two-to-three sentences. Dive into the data with us. Compared to pre-pandemic, current hospitalization rates for the […] Lawrence Herman – Mélanie Joly’s China visit is just the latest in a line of Canadian foreign-policy own-goals
Published in The Globe and Mail.
Canada has lost its way in the world. Its international influence and respect is in serious decline, as a result of a combination of poor political leadership and inept actions, especially during the nine years of Justin Trudeau’s government.
It is a challenge for any government to avoid foreign-policy missteps. Given the volatility in global affairs with unexpected crises beyond a country’s control, it is impossible to always get things right, as governments react and adjust to sudden events. But Canada’s errors in recent years go far beyond this, showing astonishing ineptitude – own-goals that will have long-term consequences, and are of the Liberal government’s own making.
Take…
Lewis, Dupuy – Nostalgia Should Not Drive Ontario’s Economic Development Policy
From: Brian Lewis and Damian Dupuy To: Ontario Economy Observers Date: July 25, 2024 Re: Nostalgia Should Not Drive Ontario’s Economic Development Policy Despite bold promises and billions of dollars of support, Ontario manufacturing jobs remain around the same level as when Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservatives came to power. The province needs to move past the nostalgic view of […] Rosalie Wyonch – Eliminate hallway medicine by getting non-acute patients out of hospital
Published in the Financial Post.
Canadian hospitals are capacity-constrained and expensive and therefore not the best care setting for patients who no longer need acute care and the bed that comes with it. Yet these “alternate level care” (ALC) patients accounted for 17 per cent of all acute-care bed days in Canada (excluding Quebec) in 2022-23. Reducing this unnecessary use of limited acute-care capacity could help ensure hospital beds are open for Canadians when they need them.
High ALC volume is one of the most vexing and complex health system challenges, but there are ways to address it. Relatively modest improvement could help reduce the risk of hospital bed shortages. ALC occupancy, which ranges from 14.5 to 26.1…