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Numerous unlicensed dams found structurally unsound; remediation orders issued
More than half of nearly 50 dams that fossil fuel companies built in recent years without first obtaining the proper permits had serious structural problems that could have caused many of them to fail. And now, BC’s Oil and Gas Commission (OGC), which appeared to be asleep at the switch…
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Eliminate and replace it: A better way to reform the basic personal tax amount
The new federal Liberal minority government has signalled that a tax cut will be its first order of policy business. That’s a shame because this tax cut will do little for those with low incomes while providing the most benefit to higher income households—and there are better ways to benefit…
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Property taxes in Vancouver are still too low, fueling inequality and speculation
We’ve heard a lot of griping recently about Vancouver’s proposed property tax increase for 2020, but missing from the debate is a reality check on the city’s extremely low tax rates. Vancouver’s property tax rate is, in fact, the lowest in North America, at just $2.56 per $1,000 in assessed…
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September 2007: Upper Chamber Needs Changing, But—
Proposed “Triple-E” Senate falls short of needed reform Ask most people what Canada’s Senate is for, and you’ll hear it’s a place where retired politicians and other well-known persons go to relax, and occasionally approve bills passed in the House of Commons. Few really appreciate why the Upper House of…
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Yep, it’s gouging: What we learned from the BCUC gas prices inquiry and what’s next
The BC Utilities Commission (BCUC) inquiry into gas prices delivered its bombshell final report on August 30. Among its key findings: at least 13 cents per litre of the higher gas prices at the pump over the past couple years is “unexplained” relative to what one would expect from a…
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Three ways BC can make it easier for precarious workers to unionize
The BC Labour Relations Code is being reviewed for the first time in over 15 years. Since the last comprehensive review, which took place in 2003, workers’ rights under the Code have been continuously eroded. The current review presents an important opportunity to reverse this trend by improving access to…
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Healthy public policy requires working within and beyond the health care system
Population health metrics are about more than just health care—they’re about the society we live in.
Population health metrics are about more than just health care—they’re about the society we live in.
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Pandemic hits marginalized populations hardest
First published in the Winnipeg Free Press March 9, 2021 Vulnerability to COVID-19 is not shared equally. The past year has shown that those who are most vulnerable to COVID-19 are those who live in poverty, in overcrowded housing, or in poorly regulated privately-owned and operated personal care homes. As…
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13 years on, BC Finance Ministry finds big problems with its public private partnership program
The BC Finance Ministry has produced a report much more critical of Partnerships BC and its activities around public private partnerships (P3s) than might have been expected by a province so committed to the practice. It raises issues of conflict of interest, dubious practices and questionable assumptions in the multi-…
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Electoral reform will not enable the far right: Debunking a red herring
Debunking the claims of proportional representation naysayers This is the second post of a series explaining the benefits of proportional representation and debunking myths from the ‘No’ side of BC’s 2018 electoral reform referendum. More from the series is available at policynote.ca/pr4bc. It is now clear that a core assertion…
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Fast Facts: Federal withdrawal results in loss of social housing
Manitoba is losing subsidized rental housing units—a delayed result of the federal government’s withdrawal from funding social housing in the 1990s. As operating agreements between the federal government and housing providers expire, the subsidies expire with them. As a result, nonprofit housing organizations and housing cooperatives are having to make…
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Cost of F-35 fleet could reach $126 billion, report finds
CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE FULL REPORT OTTAWA – A report on the cost of F-35s has just been released by the Rideau Institute and the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. “The Plane That Ate the Canadian Military” was written by University of British Columbia political science professor Michael Byers.…
