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1. COVID-19 isn’t the only reason for our mega-deficit

   Appeared in the Financial Post, July 8, 2020 Today, the Trudeau government presents a “snapshot” of federal finances that’s likely to blame this year’s historic federal deficit on COVID-19 and the recession. But that’s only part of the story. The federal ...

2. Federal debt may eclipse $1 trillion for first time in Canadian history

   The fiscal response to the COVID-19 crisis has been large at the federal and provincial levels. The reduction in economic activity and subsequent reduced government revenues has produced massive deficits. At the provincial level, ...

3. Getting political responsibility right in times of crises

   More often than not, politicians are given too much credit for both economic expansions (i.e. prosperity) as well as recessions. That’s not to say that policies don’t matter because they do. But the idea that a politician or government ...

4. Atlantic Canadians carry large government debt burden

   Newfoundland and Labrador has the highest per-person total government debt among the provinces at $48,478. ...

5. Canadians paying dearly for government debt in Canada

   Appeared in the Vancouver Province, February 20, 2020 For most Canadian families, the topic of government debt likely never comes up at the dinner table. And it’s easy to see why. With mortgages, vehicle leases and credit card bills, many Canadians have ...

6. Interest Costs and their Growing Burden on Canadians

   In recent years, deficit spending and growing government debt have become a trend for many Canadian governments. Like households, governments are required to pay interest on their debt. These interest payments consume resources that could have ...

7. Government policies hurting—not helping—on several fronts

   Picture if you will the following scenario. There’s a forest fire underway. How to deal with it? One logical approach is to deploy firefighters and waterbombers to extinguish the fire. Another approach is to light a number of smaller and ...

8. Trudeau sets another record—and not in a good way

   Appeared in the Toronto Sun, February 5, 2020 Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has set another record—increasing the federal debt (per person) more than any other prime minister (not facing a world war or recession) since 1870. He earlier set a spending ...

9. Examining Federal Debt in Canada by Prime Ministers Since Confederation, 2020

   Canada’s 23 prime ministers have each left a legacy, and each of those legacies has an effect on all Canadians. One element critical to an analysis of each prime minister is whether he or she left the federal government more or less indebted than ...

10. Government debt—the burden on Albertans continues to grow

    At quick glance, you might think Albertans are fortunate to have a relatively low provincial debt burden. But that’s an incomplete and perhaps misleading story. In reality, the debt burden for Albertans is growing quickly. Of course, the ...