This is not meant to be a comprehensive analysis but an imagining of some of the features of a post capitalist world. OK lets get this over with first. The first thing we will notice is the numbers we use to measure the success of a capitalist economy, GDP, GNP
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The Progressive Economics Forum: Ten proposals from the 2018 Alberta Alternative Budget
The 2018 Alberta Alternative Budget (AAB) was released yesterday—it can be downloaded here. An opinion piece I wrote about the AAB appeared yesterday in both the Calgary Herald and the Edmonton Journal. Inspired by the Alternative Federal Budget exercise, this year’s AAB was drafted by a working group consisting of
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Budget Fails to Crack Down on Private Corp Tax Shelter
The federal Budget changed the rules a bit re the taxation of passive investment income in private corporations, but falls well short of what was promised in terms of extra revenues and more tax fairness. The “small business” lobby helped the wealthy big time. http://www.broadbentinstitute.ca/andrew_ajackson/wealthy_get_off_lightly_from_budget_2018_changes_to_the_private_corporation_rules
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Sunday Morning Links
This and that for your Sunday reading. – Jesse Winter is the latest reporter to tell the stories of a few minimum-wage workers who will see a raise as a result of improved employment standards. And Erika Shaker points out that a substantial minimum-wage increase is a long-overdue response to
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: The Private Corporation Tax Loophole and the Ultra Rich
The 2017 Economic and Fiscal Update provides some detailed data (see pp. 51-53) on who will be impacted by the government’s plan to limit how much passive investment income can be earned in a private corporation. Income from investments held in a private corporation is taxed at a lower rate
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Ten things to know about the CPP debate
This fall, Canada’s Parliament will debate a proposal to expand the Canada Pension Plan (CPP). And over at the Behind the Numbers web site, I’m co-author of a blog post titled “Ten things to know about the CPP debate.” The blog post’s other co-authors are Allan Moscovitch and Richard Lochead.
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Small Business Taxes, Big Loopholes
by: Kaylie Tiessen & David Macdonald Small business taxes made the news last week when, during a CBC interview, federal Liberal leader Justin Trudeau suggested many business owners are using the small business tax rate as a de facto in-country tax shelter. Responding to the interview, Conservative leader Stephen Harper
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Wednesday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading. – 24 Hours offers a debate as to whether or not we should pursue a basic income – though it’s striking that the “con” case is based almost entirely on a message that a secure income for everybody can’t be achieved, rather than any
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Wednesday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading. – Joe Cressy argues that we need to take strong progressive positions to highlight the kinds of public investment which need to be made, rather than buying into right-wing spin about slashing taxes and eliminating public institutions: Public investment is about social justice, taking
Continue readingPolitical Eh-conomy: The mouse in the room: Small business fetish and the minimum wage debate
The scrappy mom-and-pop shop may be a nice image, but how well does it reflect the reality of employment? Small business may be neither as ubiquitous nor economically heroic as many people think. If this is the case, then perhaps the needs of small business should not figure as prominently
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Leadership 2013 Roundup
With a couple of weeks’ worth of developments to address, I’ll take a slightly higher-level look at the Saskatchewan NDP leadership race than I normally do. (And for those worried about missing out, note that we should have an opportunity to revisit ne…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Leadership 2013 Roundup
Yesterday saw two significant new developments in Saskatchewan’s NDP leadership race, as the two candidates outside the Legislature took the initiative to earn coverage as the fall legislative session opened. – Let’s start with Ryan Meili’s economic plan, which featured a few important concrete policies (such as a minimum wage
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Loopholes and leverage
I’ve previously wondered whether we’d see many substantial policy differences between Saskatchewan’s NDP leadership candidates. But Erin Weir hasn’t taken long to challenge what’s often seen as party orthodoxy: NDP leadership candidate Erin Weir is proposing to focus Saskatchewan’s Small Business Deduction on genuinely small businesses with taxable profits of
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Small Businesses NOT Big Net Job Creators
Small business – or at least the CFIB – consistently claim to be the big job creators in the economy. This has never been borne out by the available data on net job growth by firm size. And Statscan has now added to our knowledge by releasing a new paper
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