The time to act on EI sickness benefit reform is now
Under normal circumstances, the government’s task of deciding what items to include in a budget is incredibly difficult. With no shortage of aspirational goals to achieve and election promises to fulfill, the choices are difficult. This year, the federal budget is being decided during a time of utmost unusual circumstances. COVID-19 will no doubt be […]
Next budget a ‘critical moment’ in economic recovery for women, say experts
Following a year of economic dislocation that has hit Canadians from all walks of life hard, experts say the fallout from the pandemic has had a disproportionate impact on women, and that the next federal budget must include targeted support for those who have been hit the hardest. Carrie Freestone, an economist with the Royal […]
Canadians awaiting competing visions of a post-pandemic recovery from the government and opposition parties
Justin Trudeau’s government is expected to unveil its budget in the coming weeks, and Canadians are eagerly waiting on the governing Liberals and opposition Conservatives to elucidate their competing visions of the post-pandemic recovery. Considering the recent ramping up of the vaccination rollout, Canadians expect to turn the page on the devastating pandemic in the […]
DND can’t allow a quarter-trillion-dollar program to proceed unchallenged
The Naval Association of Canada (NAC) just released a paper commenting on the recent report by the Office of the Parliamentary Budgetary Officer (PBO) regarding the Canadian Surface Combatants (CSC). Unfortunately, in its attempt to provide context and underscore the complexity of the program it made a number of significant errors. First, the NAC paper […]
Government to ask MPs to approve $142-billion, to start with, to cover costs in 2021-22
The government will ask MPs to approve $142-billion in spending to keep it running through the 2021-22 fiscal year. Senior Ministers Deb Schulte (King-Vaughan, Ont.) tabled the main estimates in the House of Commons on Feb. 25. Those estimates give a partial projection of the federal government’s planned spending for the coming year. The “voted” […]
Feds urged to boost electric vehicle incentive program, allow used cars to qualify
Experts and stakeholders are urging the federal government to not only top up the electric vehicle incentive program, but also expand the eligibility criteria to allow used vehicles to qualify so lower-income Canadians can better take advantage of the program. “There’s a ton of evidence electric vehicle [EV] incentives are effective at driving the adoption […]
Who cares about child care?
A Canada-wide system of high-quality early childhood education and child care ticks almost all the boxes: it’s good for kids, it more than pays for itself, it generates increased revenues for governments, it creates jobs, it fosters gender equality, it’s an anti-poverty measure, and it massively assists parents, especially women, in remaining in the workforce. […]
Provinces should knock off the Oliver Twist act when it comes to health care
Provincial premiers have united to play the part of victims of a malignant federal partner as they appeal through the press for a bigger annual health transfer. “If the federal [government] doesn’t increase the transfer, there’s a risk provinces and territories won’t be able to pay for all the services their populations need. At the […]
DND sees itself as infallible on Navy ships project
OTTAWA—In reading the statement by the Department of National Defence on the Parliamentary Budget Office’s (PBO) report on the Canadian Surface Combatant (CSC), one cannot help but be shocked by DND’s arrogance and selfishness. DND sees itself as infallible. Its cost estimates are right, the PBO’s are wrong. A new design is not an option. […]
Ongoing fed support ‘essential’ as pandemic has laid bare cracks in ‘outdated’ municipal financing system, say experts
The COVID-19 pandemic that has wreaked havoc on government finances has exposed existing cracks in how cities across the country are financed, according to experts, with Federation of Canadian Municipalities president Garth Frizzell calling the system “outdated” as the federal government continues to come to the rescue of cash-strapped cities across the country. “If we […]
