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  • Austerity Through Infrastructure Cuts: Budget 2013

    One of the most amazing things about this budget is that one of its three focuses is actually the opposite of what it’s touting. You’ll likely hear that $14 billion will be spent on infrastructure over the next 10 years (actually, you may hear much bigger numbers, but they’re just…

  • New Shoes and a Haircut: Budget 2013 not so pretty for women in Canada

    The Finance Minister got a new pair of shoes. Canadians got a new federal budget. And women in Canada got another haircut. Budget 2013 is all about Jobs! Jobs! Jobs! And who wouldn’t like a job. Maybe some training. Maybe even a full-time job. With benefits. And a pension plan.…

  • Boom in temporary migrant workers creates a vulnerable workforce, increases workplace inequality

    In 2013, for the first time in Canadian history, retirees will outnumber young people entering the workforce. Immigration is a sensible way to offset population shrinkage and economic decline and, for decades, federal programs have invited new workers to settle in Canada for precisely that reason. But now, on the…

  • Alternative Federal Budget

    Think tank calls on feds to stop growth-killing austerity

    Alternative Budget plan tackles Canadians’ real concerns CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE FULL REPORT OTTAWA—The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) warns more austerity measures from the federal government could further stall an already stagnant economy. With the release of its annual Alternative Federal Budget (AFB), the CCPA shows how…

  • Sweet heart, bitter pill: Rising, dancing, and costing violence against women in Canada

    On Valentine’s Day this year women around the world will be dancing. One Billion Rising, a new initiative from Vagina Monologues’ author Eve Ensler, calls on women to dance their way to a future without violence. Now, I’m all for dancing, but I’d like to add a little counting into the mix. …

  • Tuition hike and the media between 2005 and 2010 in Québec

    I’ve contended for the last two years that between 2005 and 2010, an intensive public relations campaign was undertaken with the aim of increasing tuition fees in Québec. I believe it was crucial when the proposal to hike fees was formally submitted in Raymond Bachand’s first budget, the Liberal government’s…

  • November 2004: We Can Learn Much From Down Under

    Nine lessons on early child care we can learn from New Zealand The new federal government has promised to introduce legislation that would lead to the development of an early child care and education (ECCE) system in Canada. This is welcome news. At present, however, despite public proclamations on the…

  • Fast Facts: City no longer a player in poverty reduction

    Winnipeg falls further behind other cities with proposed budget cuts The City of Winnipeg’s preliminary operating budget for 2013 cuts spending on poverty reduction, housing, and neighbourhood initiatives at a time when government leadership and resources are desperately needed to address economic and social inequality. The document indicates that the…

  • Trade and Investment Research Project

    New trade treaties jeopardize fisheries regulation

    CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE FULL REPORT Ottawa – The proposed Canada-EU Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) and other trade and investment treaties threaten the sustainability of fisheries and fishing communities, says a new report from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA). Globalization, Trade Treaties and the Future of the…

  • Selling out our natural resources

    In the beginning of December, the Harper government gave its approval to two takeover deals in the energy sector. Nexen is involved in offshore production operations around the world and in oil sands in western Canada. It will now be the property of CNOOC, a Chinese corporation. The second deal…

  • Mark Carney’s tenure and the state of monetary policy

    Mark Carney’s tenure as Governor of the Bank of Canada overlaps some challenging economy history. Appointed in early 2008 just as the US housing bubble was popping, Carney took the helm in time for a financial crisis that brought the global economy to its knees. We are still living that…

  • Stagnant economy may mean more cuts to come

    The federal government released its annual fall update on the country’s finances today. Despite the upbeat messaging around the “Update of Economic and Fiscal Projections” there are concerning underlying trends with the country and its finances. For regular Canadians, there is no explosive growth expected in the job market to make up…