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  • Nova Scotia Alternative Budget

    NS budget must put people first

    The Hamm government releases its provincial budget today.  The finance minister has already told us that it will be balanced.  But this is not a particularly difficult task given increasing federal transfers and own-source revenue.  The real challenge for the minister is how well he addresses the social and infrastructure…

  • Trade and Investment Research Project

    Time to draw a line in the sand on the softwood lumber dispute—report

    CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE FULL REPORT OTTAWA—It’s time to play hardball with the US Administration on the long-running softwood lumber dispute, says a report released today by the CCPA. The report, entitled Time to Draw a Line in the Sand: NAFTA and the Softwood Lumber Dispute by CCPA Executive…

  • Municipal taxation needs reforming

    Tax increases are always controversial, but this year some Nova Scotians are particularly cranky about paying taxes and for good reason. I’m not talking about the predictable ideological clamouring for income tax cuts.  What has really got some taxpayers angry this year is the increase in municipal taxes due to…

  • Minimum wage workers need a real raise

    How much should the minimum wage increase? This is the question being considered by a committee reporting to the Minister of Environment and Labour.  To most of us the need for a substantial raise in the rate is obvious – it not only puts money in the pockets of Nova…

  • New opportunities for Nova Scotia

    The provincial government finds itself facing a better financial position than it has in more than a decade.  The Auditor General has pegged the forecast budget surplus for 2004-2005 at $72 million and the province appears to have reached an agreement on off-   shore oil and gas.  With the debt…

  • December 2004: Medicare Still on Life-Support

    Health accord flawed by poor accountability and enforcement The health care accord reached last September by the federal, provincial, and territorial first ministers is a better deal than those signed in 2000 and 2003, but suffers from the same flaws: poor accountability, reporting, and enforcement. Despite this agreement, Medicare is…

  • When Bush comes to town

    John Hamm has asked us to welcome George Bush in a Nova Scotian manner.  But being polite is frankly going to be difficult and it is not in our best interests. For the most part Bush has himself to blame for the less than warm reception he has been receiving…

  • Nova Scotia fares poorly among Atlantic neighbours on measures of child poverty

    CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE FULL REPORT HALIFAX:  A report released today by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives assesses progress on several measures of child poverty and finds that Nova Scotia performed fared most poorly among the four Atlantic Provinces. Authors Pauline Raven and Lesley Frank used the most…

  • Public Interest Research Project (BC)

    Seats vs. money

    The post-secondary financing dilemma Earlier this year, the provincial government announced a major expansion of post-secondary education in BC—the creation of 25,000 new college and university seats between now and 2010. This is good news, something education advocates had been seeking. But before we hand out top marks to the…

  • Eroding Equalization

    The issue of equalization has raised its barely comprehensible head once more. But just because it is complicated doesn’t mean it’s not important. So here is my attempt to shed light on the issue. The Federal equalization transfers are intended to ensure that Canadians receive a similar level of public…

  • Seven-day shopping won’t cure what ails us

    Nova Scotians are having a plebiscite on Sunday shopping and debate on the issue is in full swing. The proponents of Sunday shopping have portrayed it as a simple matter of providing choice to businesses and shoppers. In fact 7- day-a-week shopping will have an impact on all of us…

  • Economic Security Project (BC)
    Public Interest Research Project (BC)

    BC’s social housing shell game

    It seems barely a day goes by without a news story about BC’s hot real estate market and booming residential construction. People are buying up homes faster than you can say interest rate hike, and as prices rise, home ownership is becoming more expensive — and elusive — for many…