Tuesday, November 29 saw debate at third reading on the Cons’ omnibus crime bill. And with even some Cons starting to recognize the desperate need for amendments, the government’s obstinate refusal to allow for any real consideration of the bill stood out all the more. The Big Issue At the
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Accidental Deliberations: Parliament in Review: November 24, 2011
The main topic of debate in the House of Commons on Thursday, November 24 was again copyright – and once more, the Cons couldn’t be bothered to try to defend their own legislation. The Big Issue But that left plenty of time for opposition speakers to raise the level of
Continue readingRandom Ranting Raving and Ratings: EI financing agency spends millions doing nothing – Politics – CBC News
So much for being fiscally responsible! Maybe the reason the number of Service Canada’s E.I. offices is being slashed by over 80% is to pay for this boondoggle. EI financing agency spends millions doing nothing – Politics – CBC News: Backlogged by Design Conservative ridings benefit from… ..
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Monday Morning Links
Assorted content to start your week. – Erin nicely challenges Brad Wall’s efforts to tilt the playing field against poorer provinces when it comes to Employment Insurance and equalization. – But I’m not sure we can expect much change to EI in any event. After all, as Dr. Dawg notes,
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Parliament in Review: November 18, 2011
Friday, November 18 saw two pieces of legislation discussed. And the contrast couldn’t have been much more stark between an opposition effort to develop better legislation, and a government focused on nothing more than sticking to talking points regardless of whether they made the slightest sense in context. The Big
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Wall Strikes Out on Fiscal Federalism
Saskatchewan’s Brad Wall recently issued a statement exhorting his fellow Premiers to blaze largely unspecified new trails on healthcare, Employment Insurance and Equalization. Unfortunately, he misses the ball on all three issues. Greg Fingas and Verda Petry have already refuted Wall’s call for further healthcare privatization. On Employment Insurance, Wall
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: EI Benefits Decline Amid Rising Unemployment
Today, Statistics Canada reported that the number of Canadians receiving Employment Insurance (EI) benefits fell for a third consecutive month in November. This decline would be good news if it reflected an improving labour market. Unfortunately, unemployment has also increased for three consecutive months. The trend is a dwindling number
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: The “Job Seekers Allowance”
Michael Mendelson has posted a long comment on my earlier post regarding the Mowat Report on EI. He defends Caledon’s proposal for temporary non EI income support for the unemployed as a clear improvement over welfare , and stresses that it is not intended to undermine EI as a social
Continue readingRandom Ranting Raving and Ratings: Backlogged by Design?
It is an old tried and tested political trick. If you want to look like a hero, break something while no one is looking… fix it and then take all the credit. If that statement has you scratching your head consider the case of Service Canada. The offices are already
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Friday Evening Links
Assorted content to end your week. – No, we shouldn’t be surprised that the Harper Cons are allowing defence contractors to deliver nothing at all. But is it really so much to ask that they not actually provide an incentive for further delays by reducing the penalties applied as they
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Parliament in Review: November 15, 2011
Much of Tuesday, November 15 was spent discussing C-13, the Cons’ budget implementation bill. And with a giant and scattered omnibus bill came a Commons debate to match. The Big Issue The main topic of debate on the Cons’ budget was once again their series of tax credits, with the
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Social Insurance Benefits Increase Tomorrow!
Amidst the plethora of media reports on “payroll tax” increases for 2012, there was little mention of increases in benefits. There are, of course, two sides to social insurance programs. Starting in January, CPP benefits – indexed to inflation – rise by 2.8% to a new monthly maximum of $986.67.
Continue readingMontreal Simon: Stephen Harper and the War on the Unemployed
You don’t have to be a weatherman, or an economist, to know that a cold wind is blowing in Harperland, and that a recession could be just around the corner. So what are the Cons doing? Answer: Planning to cut corporate taxes even more, and taxing our paycheques. Canadians will
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Wednesday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading. – The Edmonton Journal makes it clear that the Cons’ efforts to stymie any global climate change agreement aren’t without some serious controversy even in the party’s Alberta core: The year 2011 had better not go down in history as one in which Canada
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: EI Coverage Falls Below 40%
It may be a grim Christmas for thousands of unemployed Canadians. Today’s Employment Insurance figures show that fewer workers received benefits in October, even as more became unemployed and filed EI claims. Specifically, the number of people receiving regular benefits declined from 546,580 in September to 541,230 in October. The Labour
Continue readingDecoding Dunderdale
James McLeod has a great piece in the Telegram today. It comes complete with a great headline derived from a quote the Premier provides, all of which, in its own subtle way speaks volumes about the Newfoundland and Labrador Government’s unchanged half century-long view of how things ought to work
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: More on Mowat and Winners and Losers from EI
Further to my post yesterday on the Mowat report on EI, I looked up the most recent rates of unemployment for the 58 EI regions. In the current regionally differentiated system, which Mowat wants to replace with a single national system, these unemployment rates are those which determine the level
Continue readingthe reeves report: Mowat Centre report finds current EI system riddled with “systemic inequities”
Employment Insurance available through Service Canada Making It Work, the latest report from the Mowat Centre at the University of Toronto, has taken aim at Canada’s system of Employment Insurance (EI), one of the cornerstone’s of Canada’s welfare state system. Riddled with “systemic inequities” and “regional political considerations,” the EI
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: The Mowat Centre and Employment Insurance
The Mowat Centre final report on Employment Insurance (EI) released today has won a fair bit of media attention, and will serve to deepen the national debate over Canada’s most important income security program for working age adults and families. The Task Force has commissioned and published a number of
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Parliament In Review: October 24, 2011
Monday, October 24 saw another day dedicated largely to discussion on the Canadian Wheat Board – with the Cons simultaneously declaring that there’s nothing to debate and failing to respond to the concerns pointed out repeatedly by the opposition, whil…
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