The Fraser Institute is an independent Canadian public policy research and educational organization with offices in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, and Montreal and ties to a global network of 86 think-tanks. Its mission is to measure, study, and communicate the impact of competitive markets and government intervention on the welfare of individuals. To protect the Institute’s independence, it does not accept grants from governments or contracts for research. Visit fraserinstitute.org.
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TORONTO—Ontario’s senior population will reach nearly 24 per cent of the total population by 2043, leading to persistent budget deficits and increased health-care spending, finds a new study released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank.
“Ontario’s aging population will only put more pressure on provincial finances in the coming years,” said Jake Fuss, senior economist at the Fraser Institute and co-author of The Implications of an Aging Population for Government Finances in Ontario.
TORONTO—Ontario is on track to become a “have not” province by 2025 due to a design flaw in Canada’s equalization program, finds a new study released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank.
“Based on projections, it’s likely that Ontario will become a have-not province in 2025/26, which affects not only the province but others because it will reduce the amount of equalization money available to current equalization recipients,” said Ben Eisen, senior fellow at the Fraser Institute and co-author of Why Is Equalization Still Growing? 2021 Update.
VANCOUVER—Despite spending more on health care than most other developed countries with universal coverage, Canada has some of the lowest numbers of doctors, hospital beds, and medical technologies—and the longest wait times, finds a new study released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank.
“There is a clear imbalance between the high cost of Canada’s health-care system and the value Canadians receive in terms of availability of resources and timely access to care” said Bacchus Barua, Director of health policy studies at the Fraser Institute and co-author of Comparing Performance of Universal Health Care Countries, 2021.
TORONTO—Despite misperceptions, the vast majority of minimum-wage earners in Ontario don’t live in low-income households, finds a new study released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank.
Between 2009 and 2019, Ontario raised the minimum wage by 24 per cent to $14 an hour, and some groups—including the province’s official Opposition—continue to push for an even higher minimum wage.
CALGARY—Since 2015, federal spending on Indigenous programs has skyrocketed from $12.4 billion to $24 billion for fiscal year 2021/22, finds a new study released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank.
In other words, Indigenous federal spending increased by 94.3 per cent since 2015 (after adjusting for inflation).
VANCOUVER—Replacing coal-fired power in Canada with renewable energy will impose significant costs on Canada’s economy while only making modest reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, finds a new study released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank.
“Despite what advocates claim, renewable power—including wind and solar—isn’t free and comes with only modest benefits to the environment,” said G. Cornelis van Kooten, economics professor at the University of Victoria, senior fellow at the Fraser Institute and author of Canadian Climate Policy and its Implications for Electricity Grids.
VANCOUVER—Fundamental reform of Canada’s health care system needs to start with replicating changes made in the 1990s when Ottawa removed strings to federal funding for welfare to provide the provinces with more autonomy and flexibility, finds a new study released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank.
“COVID-19 has exacerbated two of the most important ongoing public policy challenges facing Canada: the deterioration of government finances, and the comparative underperformance of our health care system,” said Ben Eisen, senior fellow at the Fraser Institute and co-author of Less Ottawa, More Province, 2021: How Decentralized Federalism Is Key to Health Care Reform.
VANCOUVER—Due in part to Canada’s unfavourable business environment—which includes higher taxes, more regulation and lack of pipeline capacity—oil and gas investors will likely continue to divert investments from Canada to the United States, finds a new study released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank.
“Financial capital is mobile, so policymakers in Canada must understand that government policies have helped facilitate the flight of oil and gas investment from Canada to the U.S.,” said Steven Globerman, professor emeritus at Western Washington University, resident scholar at the Fraser Institute and co-author of The Investment Outlook for the Canadian and US Oil and Gas Sectors.
VANCOUVER— Per-person federal program spending is expected to reach a minimum of $13,032 in 2021/22 (adjusted for inflation), which is 34.8 per cent higher than in 2019, pre-COVID, finds a new study released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank.
VANCOUVER—Despite spending an additional $5.6 billion in 2019-20, the new Canada Child Benefit only moved an estimated 90,900 children above Statistics Canada’s Low-Income Cut-Off, a key measure of low-income, finds a new essay released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank.
“One of the stated goals of the Canada Child Benefit was to help lift children out of poverty, but most of the households that benefit from this new program compared to the previous ones were never living in poverty in the first place,” said Professor Christopher Sarlo, senior fellow at the Fraser Institute and author of Does the Canada Child Benefit (CCB) Actually Reduce Child Poverty?
MONTRÉAL—As Canadians and policymakers consider changes to long-term care, it’s important to recognize and learn lessons from more successful long-term care systems in other countries with universal health care, finds a new study released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank.
“The difficulties in meeting the care needs of the elderly in nursing homes or at home in Canada long precede the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic,” explained Yanick Labrie, senior fellow at the Fraser Institute and author of Rethinking Long-Term Care in Canada.
TORONTO—Economic growth and business investment in Canada have been faltering, which has severely weakened the country’s ability to encourage innovation or new business start-ups, finds a new study released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank.
“Canada’s sluggish economic growth in the years before the pandemic reflects a lack of innovation and weak productivity growth,” said Philip Cross, senior fellow at the Fraser Institute and author of Canada’s Faltering Business Dynamism and Lagging Innovation.
TORONTO—Ontario has experienced weak business investment over the past two decades with one of the lowest growth rates in the country, finds a new study released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank.
“The decline of Ontario’s manufacturing sector in the 2000s, the 2008/09 recession, and a tepid recovery have combined to create an extended period of economic weakness for the province,” said Ben Eisen, senior fellow at the Fraser Institute and co-author of An Assessment of Recent Economic Performance and Business Investment Growth in Ontario.
VANCOUVER—A typical Canadian family of four will pay an estimated $15,039 for public health-care insurance this year, finds a new study released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank.
“Canadians pay a substantial amount of money for health care through a variety of taxes—even if we don’t pay directly for medical services,” said Bacchus Barua, associate director of health policy studies at the Fraser Institute and co-author of The Price of Public Health Care Insurance, 2021.
TORONTO—In the Fraser Institute’s annual Economic Freedom of the World report, Canada is no longer among the top 10 most economically-free countries in the world.
In this year’s report, Canada ranks 14th based on 2019 data, the most recent comprehensive data, part of a downward trend since 2016. (Last year, Canada initially ranked 8th, although data revisions later lowered its rank to 13th.)
TORONTO—Building codes in Canada contribute to homelessness by reducing the supply of low-income housing, finds a new study released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank.
“When addressing homelessness, well-intentioned policymakers often overlook the significant issue of building codes and how they can actually make the lives of low-income people much worse,” said John Palmer, Professor Emeritus from the University of Western Ontario and co-author of Housing Codes, Homelessness, and Affordable Housing.
CALGARY—The debt the federal government is expected to accumulate now, and in the future, will be disproportionately paid for by younger Canadians, finds a new study released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank.
VANCOUVER—This Labour Day, workers and employers should push for improved productivity, the key to a four-day workweek and more work-from-home opportunities, suggests an article released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank.
“The pandemic has encouraged workplace innovations that can continue into the future if workers become more productive,” said Steven Globerman, resident scholar at the Fraser Institute and author of Four-Day Work Week and Work-From-Home Initiatives Hinge on Improving Productivity.
TORONTO—The costs of government regulation, including labour regulations such as licencing and accreditation, represent a real barrier for Canadians—especially low-income Canadians—trying to move up the income ladder, finds a new study released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank.
“Government regulations impede the ability of Canadians to make themselves better off by slowing the upward mobility of workers,” said Vincent Geloso, an assistant professor of economics at George Mason University, senior fellow at the Fraser Institute and co-author of Economic Freedom Promotes Upward Income Mobility.