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Ottawa summit aims to boost first-nations economies
Monday, January 23rd, 2012
Jan. 22, 2012
Finance Minister Jim Flaherty is preparing a budget based on departmental proposals for spending cuts… aboriginal programs in areas such as health and housing are clearly at risk… But Mr. Harper says a focus on sharing natural-resources wealth can actually boost social funding for communities… if the billions in mineral, hydro and forestry development in northern Manitoba were to benefit the region’s communities, Ottawa could spend less in areas like on-reserve housing. “The treaties were based on sharing the wealth,” he said.
Tags: budget, economy, Indigenous, participation, rights, standard of living
Posted in Equality Debates | No Comments »
Flaherty’s tax credits cost Ottawa billions
Tuesday, January 10th, 2012
Jan. 10, 2012
The credits featured prominently in government advertising, allowing the Conservatives to target their message toward various segments of the population…. the annual cost of the Tax Free Savings Account – announced in the 2008 budget – has grown from $65-million in lost revenue in 2009 to $220-million in 2011… the Children’s Fitness Credit and the Public Transit Tax Credit, appears to have stabilized at $115-million and $150-million respectively… “They call these things tax cuts, but in fact they’re expenditures and they’ve only gone to make the tax code look like a piece of Swiss cheese.”
Tags: budget, economy, standard of living, tax
Posted in Governance Debates | No Comments »
Ottawa proposes first nations property ownership
Thursday, December 15th, 2011
Dec. 15, 2011
Conservative MPs are proposing… legislation that would allow natives to own private property within the communal land of reserves. The change… would mark a dramatic shift for individuals living on reserve. It would make it easier to accumulate wealth and to use homes as collateral when seeking bank loans to start businesses… about 10 communities out of the more than 600 first nation reserves in Canada that are ready to move in this direction… But Mr. Atleo of the Assembly of First Nations has previously… noted that AFN chiefs had rejected the concept of private property.
Tags: economy, ideology, Indigenous, privatization, rights
Posted in Equality Debates | No Comments »
Ottawa looks at rewriting rules on charitable giving
Friday, October 28th, 2011
Oct. 28, 2011
Ottawa is conducting a sweeping overhaul of the way it finances charities and non-profit organizations, pledging a new era of accountability in which businesses and citizens shoulder more of the cost of giving… financing will come with more strings attached in an effort to ensure that organizations deliver promised social gains. While the first steps will be small, the government’s ultimate goal is a shift in public expectations as to the role of government in assisting social causes.
Tags: ideology, philanthropy
Posted in Inclusion Delivery System | No Comments »
A new development model gains steam in aboriginal communities
Monday, April 11th, 2011
Apr. 11, 2011
Mining, forestry and energy still provoke battles, but experience is leading to more enlightened resource deals that go beyond the traditional model, which sees a company simply handing out royalty cheques… corporations increasingly realize the futility of battling aboriginals in courts of justice and public opinion… first nations are also finding creative ways to get around the red tape of the Indian Act, which forces them constantly to seek Ottawa’s approval. A string of relatively recent laws allowing communities to opt out of certain sections of the Indian Act… offers more freedom to do business.
Tags: economy, Indigenous, standard of living
Posted in Equality Debates | No Comments »
Fight over cost of Tory crime bills sets up Commons confrontation
Saturday, February 12th, 2011
Feb. 11, 2011
The debate exposes an anomaly in Canada’s political system. Whereas legislation in the United States or Germany must be accompanied with estimates as to what the measures will cost, that doesn’t happen in Ottawa. The creation of the Parliamentary Budget Office was supposed to help with this, but the Conservatives dispute the PBO’s estimates of how much the justice measures will cost. Further, watchdog Kevin Page has said he often runs into problems getting documents from government that parliamentary committees have asked him to find.
Tags: budget, corrections, rights
Posted in Governance Debates | 1 Comment »
Tough choices ahead as little-known pension changes take effect
Thursday, December 30th, 2010
December 30, 2010
The changes provide another example of the Conservative government’s increasing use of budget legislation to pass a wide range of policies that are not spelled out in the original budget documents.
The latest notices… available online, explain the change. Canadians can now choose to receive a larger monthly benefit if they choose to start collecting CPP after age 65. Conversely, collecting CPP before age 65 will mean a decrease in benefits from the previous formula.
Tags: participation, pensions, rights, standard of living
Posted in Social Security Debates | No Comments »
Shelving CPP expansion, Flaherty pitches private-sector retirement plan
Thursday, December 16th, 2010
The Finance Minister’s call for modest enhancements to the Canada Pension Plan is moving to the backburner as Ottawa was unable to convince enough provinces to get on board. Instead, Jim Flaherty said there is a willingness to move ahead with a new privately-run option targeted at workers who are either self-employed or who work for a company that doesn’t offer a pension. The minister said he hopes the proposed Pooled Registered Pension Plan will be attractive to companies that previously felt high management costs prevented them from offering their employees a pension.
Tags: ideology, pensions, poverty, standard of living
Posted in Equality Debates, Social Security Debates | No Comments »
Stung by allegations of inflated pay, native chiefs to open their books
Saturday, December 11th, 2010
Dec. 11, 2010
Under fire over revelations that some of them are paid better than provincial premiers, Canada’s native chiefs are poised to make an unprecedented commitment to open their books. The more than 600 chiefs of the Assembly of First Nations are expected to adopt a resolution next week promising to “lead by example” through the clear and timely release of audits, public accounts, salaries, honorariums and expenses of their chiefs and council.
Tags: budget, Indigenous
Posted in Equality Debates | No Comments »
Health care a priority, survey shows
Sunday, December 5th, 2010
Dec. 03, 2010
The survey of 1,002 Canadians by Nanos Research asked respondents to rate a list of issues in terms of how much of a priority they should be for the government of Canada. On a scale of one to 10, health care came in at 8.39. That strong view was consistent across all age groups and all regions of the country. That places health care ahead of controlling the cost of government (7.92); fighting poverty (7.73); helping seniors (7.72); having tougher sentences for criminals (6.91) or Senate reform (5.33).
Tags: budget, Health, standard of living
Posted in Health Debates | No Comments »
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