Fiscal update: privatization of public infrastructure a major step in wrong direction
STATEMENT by Andrew Jackson, Senior Policy Advisor, Broadbent Institute, on the fall Economic and Fiscal Update.
Read morePrivate infrastructure bank not in the public interest
The Advisory Council on Economic Growth chaired by Domenic Barton has proposed to federal Finance Minister Bill Morneau the creation of an independent Canadian Infrastructure Development Bank (CIDB) to help finance $200 billion of public infrastructure projects over the next decade. There is an argument for improved financing tools, but no case for such a lever for massive and costly privatization.
The report of the Council reiterates the consensus view that investment in public infrastructure such as roads, mass transit, railways, ports, water and waste water treatment, clean energy and power grids has been too low, and that a major increase could drive immediate job creation while also boosting longer term economic growth.
Read moreAlberta gets it right on $15 minimum wage
The Alberta government has done it.
On October 1st, the minimum wage increased by one dollar to $12.20 per hour, making it the highest provincial, but not territorial, minimum wage in Canada.
Read moreWhat should BC's economy look like in 2030?
On September 22 and 23, the Broadbent Institute hosted Progress Summit BC to chart a progressive path forward for the province in this critical election year.
In a marquee panel on the future of BC's economy, panelists were asked to answer the following question: What must change to ensure BC’s economy in 2030 secures shared and sustainable prosperity? Below are excerpts from each panelists' remarks.
Read moreThe co-operative economy as a model for B.C.
On September 22 and 23, the Broadbent Institute hosted Progress Summit BC to chart a progressive path forward for the province in this critical election year. The Summit kicked off with a discussion about the co-operative economy in BC, and how that model can be expanded and advanced in the decades ahead. Watch the video of Vancity CEO Tamara Vrooman in conversation with Janet Austin, CEO of YWCA for Metro Vancouver.
Read moreRetrieving affordability: progressive policy solutions for BC’s housing crisis
On September 22 and 23, the Broadbent Institute hosted Progress Summit BC to chart a progressive path forward for the province in this critical election year. In the panel entitled 'Retrieving affordability: progressive policy solutions for BC’s housing crisis' panelists were asked to outline what practical, progressive, policies can ensure future generations of lower and middle-income British Columbians can live and thrive in their cities. A summary of their remarks are outlined below.
Read moreRising right-wing populism and the failure of global economic governance
With the global economy mired in slow growth and right-wing, nationalist populism in the ascendant in many of the advanced industrial countries, one might have hoped that the G20 summit in Hangzhou, China would have come up with a real plan to promote a sustainable, shared recovery.
If so, one would be very disappointed since the final communique consisted mainly of empty rhetoric and evaded the key issues of competitive fiscal austerity and increasing income inequality.
Read moreFederal tax review must target loopholes for wealthy, boost fiscal capacity
Progressive tax reform to promote both greater distributional fairness and increased fiscal capacity to fund social programs and public services should be squarely on the agenda for the 2017 federal budget. Indeed, with faltering growth, the federal Liberals will be hard-pressed to meet their commitments to new investments,while still ensuring a promised decline in the federal debt to GDP ratio, if they do not significantly increase revenues.
Read moreCanada's middle-class jobs challenge
Good jobs are a central mechanism in the creation of shared prosperity.
What matters for workers is not just being able to find any job but also security of employment, level of pay, working conditions, and the opportunity to develop talents and capacities.
Read moreBrexit vote underlines need for a reformed globalization model
The narrow victory of the leave side in the Brexit referendum demands a profound rethinking of the liberal globalization agenda.
At one, highly disturbing level, the majority for leave was a clear victory for the nativist, often overtly racist, populist right, and a clear defeat for the economic and political elites who overwhelmingly backed the remain side. As widely noted, this underlines the lack of broad popular support for deep economic and political integration which seems to be increasingly pervasive in both Europe and the United States.
Read more