Steady as She Goes – For Now: Council Recommends Holding Domestic Stability Buffer at 3.5 percent
Second Meeting of the C.D. Howe Institute Domestic Stability Buffer Council
At its recent meeting, the C.D. Howe Institute’s Domestic Stability Buffer Council (DSBC) recommended that the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) maintain the Domestic Stability Buffer (DSB) for major banks at 3.5 percent at its next setting in June.
The DSBC provides OSFI, industry participants, and key economic policy voices with an independent assessment of the appropriate size of the buffer in pursuit of OSFI’s mandate of contributing to public confidence in the Canadian financial system. The Council consists of Vivian Abdelmessih, Cathy…
John Oakey – Canadians pay the price of a baroque tax system
Published in the Globe and Mail Throughout my career, the Income Tax Act has grown increasingly complex – complicating even the simplest transactions. This underscores the need for a thorough review of the ITA. That’s a sentiment shared by CPA Canada in our 2024 pre-budget submission, which recommended prioritizing a principled approach to tax policy […]Rosalie Wyonch – Fixing the ALC Patient Problem is a Triple Win for Canadians
To: Health Policymakers From: Rosalie Wyonch Date: May 10, 2024 Re: Fixing the ALC Patient Problem is a Triple Win for Canadians Hospitals are capacity constrained, more expensive and no place for patients who no longer need an acute-level bed. Yet, these Alternate Level Care (ALC) patients, represented 17 percent of all acute-care bed-days in Canada […] Mind the Gap: The Impact of Budget Constraints on Ontario’s Net Zero Plans
Climate change’s urgency demands that rigorous cost-benefit analysis be performed on each energy transition expenditure. This publication calculates if there is a potential funding shortfall for Ontario’s net zero targets relative to its current cost projections and the available sources to pay for it. Under an aggressive adoption scenario, annual available funding in Ontario […] Bob Baldwin – A proposal to encourage more pension fund investing at home is wrong for Canada
Published in the Globe and MailLast month’s budget unveiled a working group led by former Bank of Canada governor Stephen Poloz to collaborate with pension fund leaders to encourage funds to invest more of their assets in Canada.This initiative is not consistent with the proper management of pension fund assets. It also lacks proper supporting […]Ontario Facing Potential $14B Shortfall for its Net Zero Plan
Ontario is facing a potential $14.8 billion shortfall between funding for its net zero plans and its goals, according to a new C.D. Howe Institute report. In “Mind the Gap: The Impact of Budget Constraints on Ontario’s Net Zero Plans,” author A.J. Goulding calculates that…John Manley – Responsible fossil fuel development should be part of Canada’s future
Published in the Financial Post The prevailing discussion about Canadian energy use and production and climate initiatives omits some key considerations. Canada is energy rich, well-endowed with oil, natural gas, hydro generation capacity and nuclear technology. Add in our substantial mineral, forestry, agriculture and fishery resources, and you could say that natural resources constitute Canada’s […]Travis Toews – Canada’s return to prosperity starts at the ballot box. Government spending must be reined in
Published in the Financial Post Last month’s federal budget has been called “the worst … in decades.” It is hard to disagree. Spending is clearly out of control, the cost of servicing Canada’s debt is ballooning and a balanced budget is not even on the horizon. In this, the feds are not alone. At every […]Ambachtsheer, Hamilton and Waitzer – Assuring the sustainability of the Canada Pension Plan: A new consensus is required
Published in the Globe and Mail The creation of the Canada and Quebec pension plans in the 1960s and subsequent amendments to them in the 1990s is a compelling story of how governments worked together to create and sustain one of Canada’s greatest public-policy achievements. Today we are faced with the thorny issue of how […]William B.P Robson – Government Must Clarify or Drop the 2024 Budget’s Capital Gains Tax Changes
To: Canadian taxpayers From: William B.P. Robson Date: May 6, 2024 Re: Government Must Clarify or Drop the 2024 Budget’s Capital Gains Tax Changes The 2024 federal budget announced higher capital-gains taxes that will be effective June 25. Instead of paying tax on half of all gains under current rules, individuals will pay tax on half of gains under […]Prospects for the World Economy in the Polycrisis with Martin Wolf
How do we get global powers to work together to solve the world’s polycrisis? Financial Times Chief Economic Commentator Martin Wolf dives into the profound generational shifts in demographics, climate change, technology, and geopolitics responsible for the state of nations and the globe.