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1. Most middle-class Canadians have seen their income taxes increase, not decrease

   In a recent Globe and Mail commentary ("Crazy rich Canadians: How to tax the 1%"), noted economist Jack Mintz said “Canada is now disadvantaged in attracting entrepreneurial and skilled labour because of its higher personal tax ...

2. Trudeau government 0-for-3 for budgets that improve fundamentals for growing the economy

   With the Trudeau government tabling its third budget, the script has become familiar. Each budget the government loudly proclaims platitudes about growing the economy and helping the middle class. In reality, there’s no magic lever to ...

3. U.S. invites new oil and gas investment while Canada lags behind

   Last week, America’s oil and gas sector received good news on the investment front. Pembina Pipeline Corp’s CEO Mick Dilger said that the next “game-changing” project could be in the United States, not Canada. He’s referring to the ...

4. Tax hatred? No, tax awareness and tax reform

   Among the modern criteria for a good tax system are the principles of efficiency and equity. But another important principle is also awareness—that is, taxpayers should be aware of the taxes the pay and the benefits they receive from ...

5. Compliance costs and complexity in Canada’s personal income tax

   It’s clear that much has changed since the personal income tax (PIT) was first introduced in 1917. Governments now rely significantly more on this revenue source than they did then. For instance, the federal government now relies on the ...

6. William Watson: the way we were—a small government taxing consumption

   The federal budget of 1917, Canada’s last without an income tax, was brought down on April 24 of that year, just 12 days after what many regard as the country’s coming of age at the battle of Vimy Ridge. In his budget speech, which, like ...

7. William Watson: My favourite finance minister of them all

   Last week the Fraser Institute published a short book about the income tax, then and now, edited by Fraser executive vice-president Jason Clemens and myself. It’s called The History and Development of Canada’s Personal Income Tax: Zero ...

8. Personal income taxes and the capital gains tax

   Numerous studies have demonstrated the high costs imposed on economies that maintain capital gains taxes, particularly those such as Canada that are relatively small and trade-oriented. The source of these costs is that capital gains ...

9. Too many analyses misrepresent capital gains income and taxes

   As the federal budget quickly approaches and rumours regarding a likely increase in capital gains taxes intensify, it’s worthwhile to consider how many of the analyses calling for higher capital gains taxes confuse capital gains income ...

10. Spending cuts impose less economic damage than tax hikes

    Among Ottawa and the 10 provinces, eight governments are currently in deficit, spending more than the revenues they collect. As Canadian governments seek to eliminate their budget deficits, they should take note of a new study by a group ...