Anti-racism strategy a ‘good start,’ says Senator, but critics pan definitions of Islamophobia, anti-Semitism
The government’s anti-racism strategy was announced last week following six months of cross-country consultations, but a number of critics, including an opposition MP, say the strategy is thin on details surrounding enforcement and that much of the terminology used within the report misses the mark. Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez (Honoré-Mercier, Que.) unveiled the government’s three-year […]
How taxation can fuel Canada’s intangibles economy
A recent report by the Public Policy Forum finds that intangible assets like technology, intellectual property, branding, and design comprise 91 per cent of the S&P 500 market index’s total value. Canadian businesses, from large tech firms to family farms, are adapting their business models to the drivers of long-term success in this increasingly intangible […]
Liberals’ 2015 economic and fiscal plan: did they deliver? Yep
OTTAWA—In August 2015, the federal Liberals presented a bold and ambitious fiscal and economic platform. At a time when even the federal NDP was promising balanced budgets, the Liberal plan proposed large deficits for the next two fiscal years to stimulate job creation and reduce poverty. Their argument was that these deficits would pay for […]
Anti-racism policy is timely but should be handled with care
OTTAWA—Multiculturalism was the panacea. Adopted in 1971, we thought things would just always get better and we would learn about and accept our differences and live happily ever after. On some levels, things have gotten better. On others levels, things are suddenly taking a turn for the worst and, yet, on others we are just […]
Selling the surveillance state: how China is exporting its technologies to the rest of the world
MONTREAL—Last week, Bojan Stojkovski, writing for Foreign Policy, reported that a deal had been struck between Belgrade and China. The item of trade: 1,000 high-definition surveillance cameras equipped with facial recognition software to be installed by Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei. Made in China and exported to the rest of the world, Beijing has begun an aggressive […]
Toronto’s waterfront project should not be left to a deep-pocketed American tech giant
TORONTO—Perhaps no decision better illustrates today the choices facing Canada and its future competitiveness and prosperity than who gets to develop Toronto’s waterfront and benefit from the intellectual property, technology development, and scaling up of companies that the multi-billion-dollar project will generate. All three levels of government will play a role in that decision. Will […]
G20 summit a chance for Canada to fiddle a new global tune while Trump continues to burn
This has been a particularly bad year for global harmony. We knew President Donald Trump was an inveterate gambler—a character flaw that led him into personal financial crises. However, now with his enhanced powers he seems to feel entitled to take on any and all supposed U.S. economic foes across the international community. A first […]
Leading by example to ensure a safer parliamentary workplace
OTTAWA—Bill C-65, our government’s groundbreaking legislation on workplace harassment and violence prevention, received royal assent in October 2018. We were able to get here quickly thanks to support from all parties. The legislation is a key part of a much-needed culture shift. It shows Canadians that we will not tolerate harassment or violence of any […]
Liberals passing the buck on weapons ban
On June 14, The Globe and Mail reported that the Liberal Party has finally decided what it will do about the thorny issue of legal access to handguns and assault weapons. Regrettably, Border Security and Organized Crime Reduction Minister Bill Blair announced that his party has ruled out a ban on handguns, arguing that “we’d […]
Details aside, Scheer’s climate change nod an important step forward
OTTAWA—Last week, Andrew Scheer gave the last of his series of major policy speeches designed to give voters a sense of some of his thinking and his would-be government’s approach to the key issues of our times. Previously, he had addressed predictable safe-ground matters for the Conservatives, like economic and foreign policy. In his last […]
