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1. Government meddling and increased air pollution

   By eliminating road-pricing, Quebec reduced the cost of using an automobile and increased levels of air pollution. ...

2. Global inequality—it ain’t what it used to be

   Appeared in the Moncton Times & Transcript, February 13, 2019 According to recent news reports, economic inequality is on the rise. Since inequality is the gloomy backdrop for many policy discussions, it’s unsurprising that many people in the world’s ...

3. 'Austerity' claims in Quebec have little basis in fact

   While headlines focus on the SNC-Lavalin affair, a minor political scandal erupted recently when rookie Liberal MNA Marwah Rizqy proposed that her Quebec Liberal Party apologize for its “austerity” efforts when it was in office. Putting ...

4. CEO pay-to-employee pay ratio tells us nothing about the competence of the CEO

   Earlier this month, the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) published its annual report on the pay packages of chief executive officers (CEOs) at top public Canadian firms. The idea is to catch the headlines by stating on what ...

5. The late great economist everyone should know

   As 2019 dawned, U.S. economist Harold Demsetz passed away. He was one of the most cited economists of the 20th century. One of his early articles tops the list of the most important articles in the American Economic Review (the highest ...

6. Provinces and municipalities key to avoiding housing bubble

   Cities with the strictest land-use regulations have the lowest rates of housing stock growth. ...

7. The reality of income inequality

   Most economists agree that income inequality has increased, especially in the United States. Testimony to this consensus is the popularity and the praise heaped upon Emmanuel Saez and Thomas Piketty for their work, which measures the ...

8. Supply management—the Grinch that stole Christmas 

   If Canadians were free to import from the U.S. without paying tariffs, a frozen turkey would cost 15 per cent less. ...

9. Quebec, Bombardier and the sunk cost fallacy

   Appeared in the National Newswatch, December 6, 2018 Bombardier CEO Alain Bellemare is in New York this week trying to convince shareholders that the company’s woes are temporary. In the last few weeks, the Canadian aerospace giant suffered a series of ...

10. Privatize Canada Post for the benefit of Canadians

    The saga of rotating strikes at Canada Post has seemingly ended with the recent passage of a special act of Parliament. Unfortunately, we’ve seen this movie before. Conflicts between the workers and the management of the state-owned ...