Rosalie Wyonch – Ozempic: A Microcosm That Can Teach Us a Lot about Healthcare Markets
From: Rosalie Wyonch To: Healthcare Observers Date: July 16, 2024 Re: Ozempic: A Microcosm That Can Teach Us a Lot about Healthcare Markets Ozempic (and other GLP-1 medications) have been having their moment. Headlines hail a “miracle drug” for weight loss, others say that’s too good to be true, and there’s even a South Park episode titled “the end […] The Trilemma and Trade-Offs in Low-Emissions Energy Supply Chains – And What Canada Needs to Know
Geopolitical tensions around chokepoints in low-emissions energy supply chains have been raising alarm about their potential disruptions to the net-zero transition. However, before Canada and other governments respond, they must grasp the complex trilemma they face and carefully…Strengthening Global Supply Chains for Low-Emissions Technology: The Policy Playbook and the Trade-offs
Governments and companies are striving to lower emissions, through policies designed to encourage the adoption and manufacturing of electric vehicles, solar panels and wind turbines. Reliable supply chains are essential for that effort. Concerns, however, have emerged about the national security implications of the supply chains related to these emerging low-emission energy technologies. The worry […] Oreopoulos, Skuterud – It’s Time to Relearn Some Basic Immigration Lessons
From: Philip Oreopoulos and Mikal Skuterud To: Immigration Watchers Date: July 15, 2024 Re: It’s Time to Relearn Some Basic Immigration Lessons At the crux of economic immigration policy is the question of whether immigrant selection should prioritize current labour market needs or the human capital of applicants. Does Canada need more farmhands and delivery riders, or do we […] Miville Tremblay – Reflections on a Canadian Tilt to Public Pension Fund Investments
To: Canadian Pension Watchers From: Miville Tremblay Date: July 12, 2024 Re: Reflections on a Canadian Tilt to Public Pension Fund Investments Should Canada’s large pension funds follow the path of Quebec’s Caisse de dépôt et placement and demonstrate a greater home bias, or national preference, in their investments? This burning question is at the […] Jeremy Kronick Becomes Co-Chair of the C.D. Howe Institute Monetary Policy Council
We are pleased to announce that Jeremy Kronick, Associate Vice President and Director of the C.D. Howe Institute Centre on Financial and…Optimizing Immigration for Economic Growth
While Canada’s skilled immigration system has been the envy of the world for decades, the post-pandemic years have seen policy prioritize plugging “holes” in lower-skilled labour markets, which is consistent with popular notions that some types of labour are “essential” to production. Instead, Canada’s economic-class immigration system should return to its successful roots by prioritizing […] No More Filling Holes – Canada’s Economic Immigration Strategy Needs to Focus on GDP Per Capita
Canada’s economic immigration strategy needs to shift away from plugging “holes” in lower-skilled labour markets to prioritizing highly skilled newcomers based on their expected earnings to boost our country’s economic growth, according to a new C.D. Howe Institute report. …DeLand, Gilmour – More Work Needed on Major Project Legislation
To: Canadian Project Watchers From: Charles DeLand and Brad Gilmour Date: July 10, 2024 Re: More Work Needed on Major Project Legislation One reason Canada’s per capita GDP has stalled and may continue to stagnate, putting Canadians’ living standards at risk, is that we struggle to build large projects cheaply and quickly. The federal government has finally acknowledged there is too […] Ed Waitzer – Market failure has caused fighting climate change to worsen economic inequality
Published in the Globe and Mail.
In evaluating courses of action, corporate decision makers tend to prioritize present and private benefits while discounting long-term costs – especially external ones imposed onto others. Economists term this “market failure,” which are to be publicly regulated by way of taxation, fines, mandates, subsidies or other “nudges.”
Such myopia is not unique to private actors, though. Politicians and public bureaucrats are typically more short-sighted, focusing on maintaining and expanding their power.
Regulatory agencies in the United States, for example, are increasingly subject to political interference and, because they are specialized, are often incapable of addressing the cascading…
John Lester – Rethinking How We Support R&D
To: Canadians Concerned About Innovation From: John Lester Date: July 9, 2024 Re: Rethinking How We Support R&D After two rounds of consultations, Finance Canada is considering reforms to its scientific research and experimental development (SR&ED) program. The review takes place against the backdrop of distressingly poor productivity performance, worries about the amount and effectiveness of R&D performed in Canada, […] Oreopoulous, Skuterud – Once the envy of the world, Canada’s immigration system now lies dismantled
Published in the Globe and Mail
At the crux of economic immigration policy is the question of whether immigrant selection should prioritize current labour market needs or the human capital of applicants. Does Canada need more farmhands and delivery riders, or do we want more scientists and tech workers?
For economists, the answer is simple.
Governments should rely on competitive markets to allocate labour to where it is most productive and focus immigration on raising the average skill level of the population.
Where there are genuine labour shortages, governments can help job seekers identify opportunities but should allow competition for scarce labour to incentivize businesses to increase wages to attract…