Search

Search results

1. Outflow of Albertans should set off alarm bells

   Unlike Texas, Alberta government finances deteriorated due to spending-fuelled budget deficits. ...

2. Comparing Government and Private Sector Compensation in Alberta, 2019

   Main Conclusions Using data on individual workers from January to December 2018, this report estimates the wage differential between the government and private sectors in Alberta. It also evaluates four non-wage benefits for which data are available to ...

3. How Albertans Continue to Keep Federal Finances Afloat

   In a 2017 study, we measured Alberta’s net contribution to Canada’s economy during the most recent economic boom in the province. We showed that when it comes to overall economic growth, job creation, or business investment, Alberta made a ...

4. Premier Notley says ‘PIMBY’ to new Alberta refinery

   On Premier Rachel Notley’s Christmas list was new petroleum refining capacity for her province of Alberta. In early December she issued a request for expressions of interest in new capacity to Alberta’s oil and gas industry and though ...

5. Three tricky points for equalization abolitionists

   For as long as equalization has existed (since 1957), Quebec has always received the largest payment. ...

6. Hampering resource development makes it harder for Quebec to end reliance on equalization

   The Trudeau government’s recent announcement that Quebec will receive billions in equalization payments next year while Alberta, Saskatchewan and Newfoundland—Canada’s major oil producers who are facing hard times—will not, caused outcry ...

7. Provincial finances in trouble—spotlight Western Canada

   The Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) recently published its annual fiscal sustainability report, which provided long-term projections to assess the sustainability of public finances for the federal government and the provinces. In this ...

8. A worrying trend at the Edmonton Food Bank

   As I noted in a recent column in the Calgary Sun, Alberta Premier Rachel Notley has an odd idea about Alberta’s economic “recovery.” I quoted the Premier, in her optimism: “As things continue to look up, we have another sign more ...

9. Alberta needs diversification—of oil transport capacity

   If it wasn’t already clear why Alberta needs a broader customer base and more highly diversified oil transportation capacity, recent events should make it painfully obvious. First, despite today’s dip, oil prices for West Texas ...

10. Alberta’s debt may eclipse 100 per cent of GDP

    Up until 2016/17, the Government of Alberta had no net debt. That is, its financial assets (such as the Heritage Fund) were greater than its liabilities. The province burned through $35 billion of financial assets beginning in 2008/09, ...