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A broader vision of public health

Thursday, December 31st, 2020

Lying beneath the weakening of public health practice, which one can think of as the tip of the iceberg, is an erosion of these deeper values and priorities… [collectivity / social justice / upstream thinking] … The erosion manifests as cuts to the public sector, solutions packaged in individualized terms, and a deepening political polarization that erodes societal assets such as trust. 

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A just recovery

Wednesday, September 2nd, 2020

… a basic income standard for the unemployed and people receiving social and disability assistance… [would improve]… their standard of living, their hope and trust in the future would grow, and their ability to participate… would increase… we need a basic services guarantee that helps every Canadian secure affordable housing, nutritious food, pharmacare, dental care, mental health care, and specialized support for people with complex needs.

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Alternative Federal Budget Recovery Plan

Thursday, July 23rd, 2020

Among the key issues in the AFB Recovery Plan requiring immediate action: implement universal public child care so people can get back to work, reform employment insurance, strengthen safeguards for public health, decarbonize the economy, and tackle the gender, racial, and income inequality that COVID-19 has further exposed.

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AFB meet GND: What role might the Alternative Federal Budget play in fleshing out the details of a Green New Deal for Canada?

Friday, March 6th, 2020

Advocates need a clear and practical agenda to make the most of this opportunity without sacrificing either environmental or social prerogatives. The AFB can help in this respect.  Adopting all the AFB 2020 actions would mark an important shift in government policy-making and put the Canadian economy on more inclusive and sustainable foundations. It would do so without significantly adding to Canada’s debt at a time when public debt is truly the least of our problems.

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How many teachers is your school set to lose? Calculate it here.

Tuesday, February 11th, 2020

As the Ontario government continues to promote educational reforms that increase class size, reduce course selection, underfund special needs and implement mandatory e-learning, I wanted to share with you some resources that help demonstrate the impact of these changes on our kids’ classrooms.

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Setting the stage for the 2020 Ontario budget

Wednesday, December 18th, 2019

Ontarians can expect the government’s talking points to feature prominently in the 2020 Ontario budget. Claims of high spending and unsustainable debt and deficit are being used to excuse cuts to public services. But how many of these claims are true? Watch our new video to find out more.

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How Not to Engage Parents: Lessons from the Ontario Ministry of Education

Monday, December 2nd, 2019

Policymaking deals with complex issues for which government officials have to develop timely, effective, efficient and sensitive responses. A consensus has formed in the past decades that officials are more likely to get it right if they ask input from the people who will be affected by the policy in question. The public shares their input in good faith, hoping it will lead to better results. But public trust is undermined when government use the input from a consultation to justify any and all policy changes.

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Should billionaires continue to exist?

Friday, November 1st, 2019

A bold tax policy package is sorely needed to address this kind of wealth hoarding, which contributes to soaring inequality. Along with a host of other progressive measures, the wealth tax in particular sits in the enviable position of being at the nexus of both good policy and good politics.

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[Income Taxes] A progressive foundation, but so much more to do

Friday, November 1st, 2019

The current tax system provides several incentives for household savings and wealth accumulation… TFSAs… RRSPs… for homeownership or mid-career education. The thing is, lower-income earners don’t really have access to these incentives. It’s an upside-down system that rewards people who already have money to save… Here are a few examples of the kinds of policy directions that could… make a meaningful difference in the financial well-being of lower-income Canadians.

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Oh Canada, our home and native tax haven

Friday, November 1st, 2019

… a national public beneficial ownership registry… would eliminate the use of shell companies as a means of engaging in financial crime and allow Canada to realize advantages like potential increased tax revenues and an easing of the endemic money laundering of recent years… We should… restrict illicit financial flows, fight corruption and lay the foundations of a fairer economy and a more decent society at home and abroad.

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