What the Budget was Missing
The budget presented just before the election call this spring was understandably full of promises of good things, and carried no hint of the tough choices to be addressed.
Posted October 6, 2017
Conflict of Interest
Suppose that in 2014 you were interested in building a new house, one more environmentally friendly than your current dwelling which, in any event, will be wearing out by the early 2020s.
Posted June 9, 2017
Another Bad Day for Electricity Customers in Nova Scotia
The energy from Muskrat Falls is not going to be available until at least 2020. But the transmission lines are all built at a cost exceeding $1.5 billion. You are going to pay the interest on that debt while we wait.
Posted September 15, 2017
Some Companies Get Subsidies, Others Get Regulatory Fog
Some companies get subsidies offered by communities eager to host them. Others don’t want payoffs. They just want permission to make their contribution to the economy.
Posted October 13, 2017
It’s Not Easy Being Green
Environmentalists play an important role in advocating for the health of our communities and our planet—campaigning for causes such as sustainable fisheries, cleaner air and water, and reduced dependency on fossil fuels. The organizations come in many varieties. Read More »
Posted July 21, 2017
Health care is a very difficult topic for governments
Health is a leading area of importance to voters, but politicians are experts neither in healthcare nor in organizational design. So political interference usually does more harm than good.
Posted September 8, 2017
Immigration Controls Fail When People Can Walk Across the Border
Well-managed immigration is hugely important to the success of Canada, and even more so to the viability of the Atlantic provinces. Read More »
Posted August 11, 2017
Making Schools Work
The Council to Improve Classroom Conditions is steaming along. In the process of addressing particular issues, it is revealing some larger truths.
Read More »
Posted April 28, 2017
CPP Changes: Don’t Pop The Champagne
The proposed changes to the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) were agreed to on June 20th by the federal government and all the provinces except Manitoba and Quebec. They are mildly useful, and will have some unexpected consequences.
Read More »
Posted July 8, 2016
Building Boom
More than two years ago, one of Halifax’s prominent developers was asked whether he was worried about there being too much product on the drawing board, or already underway.
His response was, “Either we are all right or we are all crazy.”
Read More »
Posted June 3, 2016
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Transit Choices
A study of the possibilities for commuter rail is underway. It looks expensive. That is not the only option that should be considered. Read More »
Posted March 13, 2015