Posts Tagged ‘economy’

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A short history of voluntary sector–government relations in Canada (revisited)

Wednesday, April 13th, 2022

History provides an important contextual analysis for understanding current voluntary sector–government issues… This revisited historical overview will cover five dominant themes in the evolution of voluntary sector–government relations in Canada: 1) the federal state and moral charity, 2) Indigenous–settler relations, 3) a political and social reformation, 4) the rise of the welfare state, and 5) three waves, concluding with some lessons from history.

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Ontario colleges will be able to offer three-year degree programs for the first time

Tuesday, April 12th, 2022

Minister of Colleges and Universities Jill Dunlop said new programs will train people for sectors experiencing workforce shortages; positions in demand include technology workers in health care, digital, data, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and process automation… New three-year applied degree programs must be career-oriented and distinct from university degrees; they’ll be reviewed by a quality assessment board and require the minister’s approval. The province expects new programs will be launched by fall 2023.

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This tax ‘loophole’ has helped rich Canadians avoid millions in taxes for their private corporations. Now the government wants to shut it down

Sunday, April 10th, 2022

The government said this amendment to the Income Tax Act would increase federal revenues by an estimated $4.2 billion over five years, according to the budget tabled on April 7… It appears the CRA only began in recent years cracking down on this technique of shifting a private company’s status for tax purposes, although the strategy emerged as early as 2010… the government did not address several broader tax loopholes that it was expected to.

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From health care to pharmacare to housing, federal budget fails Canadians

Sunday, April 10th, 2022

In many ways, this failed budget looks like gesture politics, the act of appearing to care but doing little of substance… Canada can afford to do better for its people. The Canadian economy is indeed “booming”… The Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) expects GDP to hit $2.8 trillion next year, about 18 higher than Ottawa forecast in December… Using conservative estimates, Ottawa is projecting a sharp drop in the federal deficit…

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Budget 2022: Some progress, but no need for panic at the country club

Friday, April 8th, 2022

Today’s federal commitment to create a national dental care program will help millions of Canadians, but there’s a huge missed opportunity to move forward on pharmacare, long-term care and needed health care spending to deal with the pandemic’s impact… Many Canadians are feeling the weight of living in uncertain times. They need better income security, better access to Employment Insurance if they lose their job, more affordable housing, and the world needs a bolder climate change plan than what’s on the table.

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Budget promises lower deficit, but more spending on housing, defence and social programs

Thursday, April 7th, 2022

To increase revenues, the government will introduce a new tax on financial institutions… [and] serves notice on high-income earners… to decide by next year if a wealth tax… is warranted… In addition to outlays for housing and dental care, the budget pegs new spending on climate action at $12.4 billion and more than $8 billion on national defence… [but] it fails to address the crisis in health care and long-term care with meaningful measures and money…

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Ten reasons why we need pharmacare in tomorrow’s budget

Thursday, April 7th, 2022

The Liberals set up the Advisory Council on the Implementation of National Pharmacare which reported in early 2019, and then campaigned on pharmacare in the 2019 election. Still no pharmacare. Now, as the financial and medical costs of coping with the pandemic keep going up, pharmacare is more important than ever.

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Always ahead of her time, Kathleen Wynne has some advice as she prepares to leave Queen’s Park

Wednesday, April 6th, 2022

The pioneering ideas Wynne fought in vain for are back in vogue after the realities of the pandemic: Child care. Check. Pharmacare. Check. Paid sick days. Check. Minimum wage increases. Check. Basic income support. Check. Wynne’s defeat led to the demise of her reforms in all these areas, as Ford’s Tories systematically dismantled what she had built. Within days of taking power, the PCs pulled the plug on her OHIP+ drug program and then went down the list.

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Posted in Governance History | No Comments »


Amid spiralling costs for Canadians and atrocities abroad, deficit is not a dirty word

Wednesday, April 6th, 2022

… business pages are full of opinions that say there’s already too much spending, deficits are dangerously high, and so any new spending must focus on supporting — surprise! — business, the self-proclaimed source of wealth creation… It’s very likely we are under-taxing some of the most profitable businesses, so yes, apart from borrowing, there’s a fix for the “how ya gonna pay for it?” crowd…  Those urging governments to trim spending look only at the costs of programs, and not the fiscal dividends of acting. 

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Fair Tax Priorities For Budget 2022

Friday, April 1st, 2022

The new Supply and Confidence Agreement between the Liberal Party and the NDP promises quick action on dental care, pharmacare and long-term care to bring about substantially better healthcare for all Canadians. It also ramps up investments in affordable housing and climate action. New funds need to be identified in Budget 2022 and beyond in order to make these commitments a reality.

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