Lawrence Schembri and Jock Finlayson join Fraser Institute as Senior Fellows

The Fraser Institute is pleased to announce Lawrence Schembri, former deputy governor of the Bank of Canada, and Jock Finlayson, one of the country’s leading public policy economists, have joined the Institute as Senior Fellows and will jointly hold the Institute’s new Peter M. Brown Chair in Canadian Competitiveness.

The new research chair was recently created to honour the Institute’s long-standing chairman, Peter Brown, who stepped down as chairman in 2022.

“Jock and Larry bring tremendous experience in policy research, and offer critical insight into the major policy issues of the day. We know both will make substantial contributions to the Institute’s work, which is why it’s so fitting that they jointly hold the new research chair in honour of Peter Brown, who has also made enormous contributions to the Institute,” said Niels Veldhuis, president of the Fraser Institute.

Mr. Schembri served as the Deputy Governor of the Bank of Canada from 2013 until his retirement in June 2022. While at the Bank of Canada, Mr. Schembri was one of two deputy governors responsible for overseeing the bank’s analysis and activities promoting a stable and efficient financial system.

He holds a bachelor of commerce degree from the University of Toronto, an MSc in economics from the London School of Economics, and a PhD in economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Mr. Finlayson recently worked as Executive Vice President and Chief Policy Officer for the B.C. Business Council, one of Canada’s most influential business associations. During his time at the B.C. Business Council, Mr. Finlayson directed the council's work on economic, fiscal, tax, environmental, regulatory and human capital issues of interest to the province's business community. He also served on the Board of Directors of the Bank of Canada from 2007 to 2013.

He holds a master's degree in business from Yale University, undergraduate and M.A. degrees from UBC, and a post-graduate diploma in economics from the University of London.

Founded in 1974, the Fraser Institute’s mission is to improve the quality of life for Canadians, their families and future generations by studying, measuring, and broadly communicating the effects of government policies, entrepreneurship and choice on their well-being.

The Institute is recognized as the top think-tank in Canada and a Centre of Excellence by the University of Pennsylvania, and the 18th most influential think-tank worldwide.