Editorial, New Zealand Herald, December 2, 2013 In themselves, the Government's proposed amendments to the Fencing of Swimming Pools Act contain a reasonable degree of common sense. What can be wrong with changes that aim to reduce the risk of children drowning? And...
Year: 2013
Housing Affordability and the Standard of Living in Regina
The Frontier Centre for Public Policy has today released Housing Affordability and the Standard of Living in Regina, a new report authored by Wendell Cox, a senior fellow with the Frontier Centre. Mr Cox is an expert in land use and transportation policy and the...
Public Utilities Board needs an overhaul
Despite major missteps taken by the Public Utilities Board with respect to Manitoba Hydro, the PUB is worth saving. That said, it needs a major overhaul. The PUB is supposed to balance the interests of monopoly firms and their customers. The agency has been in...
First Nations should take option
Manitoba First Nations should pay attention to what is going on in northwestern British Columbia. The Nisga'a Nation is embarking on a revolution in property ownership. Just recently, three Nisga'a residents announced their intent to obtain their property in fee...
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The Man who Saved the Plains Indians
At the time of Confederation, Canada’s Plains Indians were in a desperate situation. The same European-introduced guns and horses that resulted in a briefly glorious golden age for them had also resulted in constant inter-tribal warfare and the rapid disappearance of...
Renewed Talk of Abolishing the Indian Act
Political attacks on the Indian Act are back in the news, and that is a good thing. However, Canadian politicians, including First Nation politicians, need a credible plan about what to do before we pull out the champagne. Attacking the Indian Act is not a big deal...
It’s Not About the Class Size in Calgary Schools
Calgary's municipal election on Monday saw at least two new trustees elected to Calgary Board of Education (CBE). Waiting for them is a slew of concerns ranging from how money is spent to transparency to the apparent 'big issue' of class sizes. But, the recent debate...
More Edu-Babble than Substance in new BC Curriculum
Educational theorist William Heard Kilpatrick once wrote: “If people face a rapidly shifting and changing world, changing in unexpected ways and in unexpected directions, then what? Why, their education would stress thinking and methods of attack.” If it wasn’t for...
When politics dictate the economy
Diane Francis, National Post, November 2, 2013 The united States is one of the most competitive and innovative countries in the world. Canada, on the other hand, is a laggard in both categories. In competitiveness, Canada did not even make this year’s World...
Economic liberalization cuts poverty
A new video shows that poverty reduction targets in the developing world have already been met. The reduction has come from some of the most populous countries- namely China and India- reducing poverty levels through economic liberalization. The video also states...
Politician Salaries: You Get What You Pay For
This year’s federal budget included a 1.6 percent salary increase for MPs. Backbench MPs will now make $160,200, with salaries for cabinet ministers and party leaders topping out at $320,000 for the Prime Minister. As always, this pay increase sparked populist...
When Politicians Mess with Electricity
Newfoundland's Finance Minister has suddenly resigned. He disagreed with the Premier's risky and increasingly expensive quest to have a Crown Corporation, Nalcor, build and transmit power from Muskrat Falls, Labrador, to export to the eastern seaboard states. Ontario...
Counting cost of pot laws
Public policy is about trade-offs. There are few instances where a policy has no disadvantages, even if it is extremely beneficial on balance. A failure to recognize this makes us prey to simplistic and symbolic policy measures that seem sensible at first glance, but...
First Nations election bill step in right direction
The federal government has re-introduced Bill C-9, the First Nations Elections Act. The bill died on the order paper when the House of Commons prorogued this summer. The bill recognizes that well-run electoral systems are key to First Nations governance reform. Bil...
The flipped classroom has it all backwards
The one constant in the teaching profession is the regular introduction of new education fads. Whole language, open-area classrooms, and “new math” are a few examples from the past. Sadly, the lack of hard evidence for these and other fads did little to prevent them...