I’ve written a 750-word overview of the federal role in housing policy. The English-language version is here: https://nickfalvo.ca/canada-ten-things-to-know-about-the-federal-role-in-housing-policy/ The French-language version is here: https://nickfalvo.ca/canada-dix-faits-saillants-sur-le-role-du-federal-en-matiere-de-politique-du-logement/
Continue readingTag: stimulus
The Progressive Economics Forum: Trudeau government should spend more on affordable housing and homelessness
On July 21, the Alternative Federal Budget Recovery Plan was released. The document aims to provide public policy direction to Canada’s federal government, in light of the current COVID-19 pandemic. I was author of the Recovery Plan’s chapter on affordable housing and homelessness, which can be accessed here.
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Coronavirus Questions – and Explanations
Can anyone do basic math? Does anyone fact check? Does anyone question the media or the government? Another $2 trillion was just announced by the US Federal Reserve to continue the historically unprecedented transfer of wealth from Main Street to Wall Street, after a record $4.2 trillion was approved
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: The Failure of the “Left” – Continued
In addition to the giant blunders that I’ve already written about, and the clear absence of leadership on the left, there is the even more glaring indictment, which is this: The US Democratic party, including all major self-proclaimed “progressives”, just voted unanimously, along with the Republicans, to give a
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Affordable housing, homelessness and the upcoming federal budget
I’ve written a ‘top 10’ overview of things to know about affordable housing and homelessness, as they relate to Canada’s upcoming federal budget. The overview is based on the affordable housing and homelessness chapter in the just-released Alternative Federal Budget. A link to the ‘top 10’ overview is here.
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Economic Respone to Pandemic: Go Big, Go Fast
The health emergency created by the COVID-19 pandemic is of course the primary concern of Canadians, and the first priority for government to address. But it is increasingly clear that the economic fallout from the pandemic is also going to constitute an emergency. And it requires government to respond as
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Third quarter financial results released by Alberta Finance Minister Joe Ceci suggest NDP economic strategy is working
PHOTOS: Alberta Finance Minister Joe Ceci, basking in the fiscal sunshine. Below Joe: Alberta Premier Rachel Notley, like Mr. Ceci, a New Democrat; Opposition UCP Leader Jason Kenney; and Alberta Party Leader Stephen Mandel. In one regard, Alberta’s NDP Government and its principal Opposition parties are in agreement about how
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: The Alternative Federal Budget 2017
This year’s Alternative Federal Budget (AFB) was released on March 9. I was proud to be the primary author of its housing chapter (that chapter is available in English here and in French here). The first AFB exercise began in 1994, with the first AFB being published in 1995. That
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Monday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material to start your week.- David Blanchflower notes that there’s virtually no dispute that the UK is headed into an economic downturn – meaning that there’s also no excuse to hold off on fiscal relief for the public. And Brad DeLong po…
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Boosting the economy for the rest of us
Elites and the talking heads in the media are arguing about how to respond to Canada’s soured economic outlook. Who should try to boost the economy, the federal government via fiscal stimulus or the Bank of Canada via monetary policy? But while elites argue amongst themselves, the overriding context is a transfer and concentration of […]
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Sunday Morning Links
This and that for your Sunday reading.- Rosemary Barton reports on the Libs’ announcement of increased funding to help developing countries fight climate change – which does represent a noteworthy improvement on the Cons’ comparative stinginess. But as…
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Reaction to this afternoon’s Budget Speech is bound to be completely predictable
ILLUSTRATIONS: A mosaic planned for some future Legislature renovation showing the Opposition and Government positions on the budget. Below: A scene from the Kabuki theatre in which actors portraying Premier Rachel Notley and Finance Minister Joe Ceci contemplate the books left them by the PC government … or something. Below
Continue readingCuriosityCat: Trudeau’s massive $125 Billion Infrastructure Plan gains traction among voters
Nick Nanos Just in time for the second debate tonight, Nanos has come out with a poll dealing with voters’s views of what is needed to stimulate the economy. You can link to the Nanos study through the Toronto Star article. IT IS WORTH READING, AND WORTH SHARING. What
Continue readingCuriosityCat: Election 2015: X marks the spot
Here’s my current expectation of the possible seat wins around one week before the October 19 election. I’ve added an X – to mark the right hand border of my forecast – to the CBC/308 instructive Poll Tracker chart: X marks my spot for positions one week before the election
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: New column day
Here, on Donna Harpauer and the Saskatchewan Party are dismissing their own advisory group’s recommendation to work to cut Saskatchewan poverty in half by the end of the decade. For further reading…– The StarPhoenix echoes Donna Harpauer’s defeatism.– Danielle Martin and Ryan Meili make the case for a basic income,
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Rochon Asks: “Is the Canadian economy unraveling?”
In a recent CBC blog post, Louis-Philippe Rochon assesses the current state of the Canadian economy. The link to the blog post is here. Follow him on Twitter @Lprochon.
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Why the economy sucks (in one chart)
(The following is something I’ve prepared for the next issue of CUPE’s Economy at Work, a popular economics quarterly publication I produce.) In his annual Economic and Fiscal Update (EFU), finance minister Joe Oliver told Canadians that while the federal government will finally record a surplus next year after seven
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: New column day
Here, on how Brad Wall is kicking Ontario while it’s down by demanding that it let stimulus funding leak out of a province which actually needs it – and how Saskatchewan and other provinces stand to suffer too if Wall helps the Cons impose similar restrictions across the country. For
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Flaherty’s Legacy: Ideological, reckless and just plain lucky
This piece was originally published at the Globe and Mail’s online Report on Business feature, EconomyLab. There are two reasons why it is difficult to comment on the legacy of a finance minister. 1) It is a tremendously challenging job, anywhere, any time. Stewarding one of the largest economies
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Polozogistics: Nine Thoughts About the Choice of the New Bank of Canada Governor
1. He’s Number Two: Stephen Poloz was widely acknowledged in economic and political circles as the second-best choice for the top job at the Bank of Canada. So the surprise was not that he was chosen. The surprise was, Why Not Tiff Macklem? Will someone please find out and tell
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