Menu
Search results for: “site/Pat Armstrong”
-
Fast Facts The First Rung on the Ladder: community-based literacy programming in public housing complexes
A wealth of evidence—both global and local—confirms the value of literacy and the importance of programs that promote literacy. This is especially the case for low-income individuals and communities, for whom gains in literacy can be transformative. Manitoba has embraced this truth by laying the groundwork for real gains in…
-
Ten questions about the CETA
After weeks of rumours, it’s now official: the CETA talks have produced an “agreement-in-principle”. This proposed treaty is about far more than simply trade. It is a constitutional-style document that affects patent protection for drugs, foreign investor rights, local government purchasing, public interest regulation and many other matters that are…
-
The sound of silence
Weeks stretch to months, months to years as BC government clamps down on information When debate on the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Amendment Act began last fall Stephanie Cadieux, then Liberal MLA for Surrey-Cloverdale, was among many to note how British Columbians are waiting longer and longer…
-
New study outlines path to renewable electricity in Saskatchewan
CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE FULL REPORT Regina —The Saskatchewan office of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives’ series “Transforming Saskatchewan’s Electricity Future” was launched with the publication of “Sustainability is Achievable, But How Do We Get There?” by Mark Bigland-Pritchard and Peter Prebble. The report – developed in partnership…
-
Province of BC / Flickr” style=”border-radius:0px;–objectFit:cover;–imagePosX:50%;–imagePosY:50%” decoding=”async” srcset=”https://www.policyalternatives.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/pn_jun2022_opening-the-floodgates-300×133.jpg 300w, https://www.policyalternatives.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/pn_jun2022_opening-the-floodgates-768×341.jpg 768w, https://www.policyalternatives.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/pn_jun2022_opening-the-floodgates.jpg 900w” sizes=”(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px” />Opening the floodgates
More than climate crisis behind last November’s rising waters, death and destruction; experts urge province to make course correction First of Two Parts When Premier John Horgan declared a provincial state of emergency in the wake of last November’s horrific floods, landslides and deaths, he was quick to name the…
-
BC Government should not cave in to private clinics
It hasn’t been often that we at the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives have found occasion to applaud the BC government for one of its new policies. But we did commend the government for Bill 92–The Medicare Protection Amendment Act. Now, sadly, after a fierce three-week campaign by private surgical…
-
Province of BC/ Flickr” style=”border-radius:0px;–objectFit:cover;–imagePosX:50%;–imagePosY:50%” decoding=”async” srcset=”https://www.policyalternatives.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/food-secure-BC_policynote_may2016_1280x600-300×141.jpg 300w, https://www.policyalternatives.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/food-secure-BC_policynote_may2016_1280x600-1024×480.jpg 1024w, https://www.policyalternatives.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/food-secure-BC_policynote_may2016_1280x600-768×360.jpg 768w, https://www.policyalternatives.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/food-secure-BC_policynote_may2016_1280x600.jpg 1280w” sizes=”(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px” />Food security in BC? Don’t count on it.
If California’s farmers ever run out of the water needed to irrigate their crops, we’ll be in for a rude awakening. With 70 per cent of British Columbia’s imported fruits and vegetables coming from the sunny US state, any climatic disaster there would almost certainly result in dramatic run-ups in food…
-
Prairie Commons in Crisis
Beneficial Community Pasture Program killed by Bill C-38 With the widespread damage to environmental protection inflicted by the federal government’s omnibus Bill C-38, it was easy to miss the fate of more than a million acres of humble prairie grasslands. These grasslands provide habitat for endangered prairie species and provide…
-
Comprehensive action on surgical waiting times is good news for BC
The case for bold, evidence-based action on surgical waiting times—especially for hip and knee replacements that are among the longest in the country—is clear. That is why the BC government’s move to take decisive action to reduce surgical waiting times throughout the province is very good news for all British…
-
The unintended consequences of massive hydro rate increases
The Province newspaper recently published an op-ed of mine that looked at one of the unintended consequences of our provincial government’s fixation on building the exceedingly expensive Site C hydroelectric dam. Even though actual construction of the dam has yet to begin, BC Hydro customers are already paying far more for electricity…
-
Rising hydro bills pushing mills to burn fossil fuel
Premier Christy Clark’s vow to push work at the $9-billion Site C dam “past the point of no return” may be music to the ears of some construction contractors, but not to all pulp and paper firms. In a great irony, as the costs soar into the billions to build…
-
Damming the information flow: BC government officials button lipped on potentially dangerous dams
Early last spring, provincial civil servants cut off virtually all communication about what the government knew about a sprawling network of potentially dangerous and unregulated dams in northeast BC on the pretext they could not comment because of the impending election. The coordinated effort meant there was virtually no comment…
Province of BC
Province of BC
