Archive for the ‘Governance Debates’ Category
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Andrew Scheer is wrong to propose a return to a partisan Senate
… the primary purpose of our Senate is to offer its “sober second thought” on legislation, as a kind of counter balance to how legislation is created in the House of Commons, where partisanship is a necessary feature… new senators are not members of a political party and therefore do not take direction from a national party. The Senate’s political integrity is maintained and, arguably, enhanced with each new independent appointment.
Tags: featured, ideology, Senate
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Knowledge Gap on Taxes Wide and Costly
This knowledge gap lessens take-up of government social programming, particularly among low-income earners. Lack of knowledge is also associated with lower trust levels in the tax system, which in turn leads to higher rates of tax evasion or avoidance. This can raise the cost of taxation for everyone… “Policies that use the tax administrative apparatus as a delivery system cannot reach their full potential if citizens don’t understand how taxes work in general and how they are affected specifically.”
Tags: economy, participation, standard of living, tax
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Canada keeps the populist forces at bay
The Canadian public’s level of confidence in its country’s democracy and system of government has remained remarkably stable since 2014, and largely consistent with results dating back to at least 2010. Across more than three dozen measures, public trust levels have either held steady or showed modest improvement in comparison with three years ago.
Tags: featured, globalization, ideology, participation, standard of living
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If we’re serious about reconciliation, here’s some better ideas than wallowing in shame
… maybe it’s time for some new ideas, to get us beyond the cycles of grievance-reiteration and epochs of national amnesia. Like reconfiguring the Office of Canada’s Governor-General as a permanent indigenous appointment. Like adding a fifth “region” to the Senate, in addition to Ontario, Quebec, the Maritimes and the West, to represent the First Nations, Metis and Inuit… At the very least, we might start by recovering Canada’s forgotten history as a country that was being built long before Confederation by indigenous people along with the English and the French…
Tags: featured, ideology, Indigenous, jurisdiction, participation, rights
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Welcome to the new and improved Senate
They sit as independents, and act like it. They and other like-minded senators have improved more than one piece of legislation by sending it back to the House with recommended revisions. Sometimes the House has accepted their recommendations, sometimes it hasn’t. In all cases, the Senate has deferred to the final will of the Commons, as it did, ultimately, with the budget… We should think of this new, improved Senate as a jury, another institution of our democracy…
Tags: budget, featured, ideology, participation, Senate
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The Brass Tax: Busting Myths about Overtaxed Canadians
… the average tax rate reflects disproportionately the tax rate of the highest-paid… typical Canadians, smack in the middle of the income spectrum, earn incomes of roughly $50,500 and pay about $7,000 in income taxes; their effective tax rate was roughly 14%. The table also shows that only 20% of working Canadians pay more than 20% of their income as income taxes… Canada’s highest earners have an effective income tax rate of only 26%.
Tags: economy, featured, ideology, tax
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Millions in foreign funds spent in 2015 federal election to defeat Harper government, report alleges
Foreign money funnelled towards Canadian political advocacy groups affected the outcome of the 2015 federal election, according to a document filed last week with Elections Canada… In 2015, Tides Foundation donated $1.5 million of U.S. money to Canadian third parties in the election year, according to the report… The complaint by Canada Decides alleges that foreign money “spawned” Leadnow and helped fund an elaborate campaign to oust the ruling Conservative Party.
Tags: ideology, jurisdiction, participation, rights
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A pre-pre-election budget to bolster Liberal fortunes
Free pharmaceuticals for young people (a blessing). Transit breaks for old people (a sop). Cheaper child care for young parents (long overdue). Free tuition for most college students (already announced but still worthy and worth repeating). Rent control for everyone (a reprise). Hefty discounts off everyone’s hydro bills (a perennial). And the first balanced budget after a decade of deficits (about time). Which clears the way for its more progressive measures, notably phased pharmacare.
Tags: budget, child care, housing, pharmaceutical
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Reverse tax cuts to fund health care
When was the last year you remember that there weren’t any cuts to hospitals and health care, education, pools, rinks and all other public-sector services, not to mention the infrastructure deficit with our sewers, water, roads, bridges and hydro system? How much of the federal deficit, since 1981, has been caused by corporate tax cuts and tax cuts that mostly went to the top one per cent?
Tags: budget, economy, featured, Health, ideology, mental Health, standard of living, tax
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Ontario’s Liberals take a big step to the left
The Ontario government signalled its intention to move to the left over past weeks. Already they have announced: Capping class sizes in Grades 4 to 8 at 25 students a class. Significant new investments in hospitals, hard-pressed after a decade of austerity. Moving to expand rent controls, an unthinkable move just months ago. Fundamental reform of the Ontario Municipal Board, a lightning rod for controversy in land-use planning across the province. What is waiting in the wings is even more dramatic
Tags: budget, economy, ideology, jurisdiction
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