Public Policy Forum

A video from the Public Policy Forum’s Go Vote! campaign.

The moral high horses are often cynical opportunists pushing left-leaning causes and candidates

It’s a free country. Don’t vote if you don’t want to, no matter how many people try to badger or bully you into rearranging your day to suit their agenda. If they’d rather stand in line for an hour or two to cast a ballot that has a one-in-a-trillion chance of being the deciding vote, more power to them. If you’d rather enjoy a beer with your buddies or catch up on your chores, more power to you.

I generally vote in federal elections, despite the academic literature that pretty well proves that doing so is futile. I vote even when I know that my preferred candidate has zero chance of winning — dumb or not, that’s my choice. Read More »

Will he hassle central bank on interest rates or will he not?

NDP Leader Jack Layton, a frequent critic of the Bank of Canada’s monetary policies, is now being asked pointed questions about what he might do were he Prime Minister. One of the most important issues is whether he might start leaning on Bank Governor Mark Carney to follow interest rate policies with a view to manipulating the dollar.

(See update below)

In one interview, he sounds firm. He told Bloomberg Businessweek the Bank of Canada should be kept at arms length. It’s “the way to go,” he said. Read More »

.

A Liberal TV ad slammed Conservative plans for corporate tax cuts.

If tax cuts are cancelled, investors may cancel spending

By Roger Phillips

Canada’s level of corporate taxes, an issue in the current federal election, has become a subject for much comment by politicians and pundits alike.

At the political level, the debate has been dumbed down. One federal minister claimed that if the previously legislated tax levels for 2011 and 2012 were to be reversed, companies would increase consumer prices to make up the difference. An opposition politician suggested that lower taxes would just “enrich” large corporations. Economists and think-piece writers have attempted to prove or disprove the contention that reversing the planned tax levels would dampen business investment. Read More »

Fed wants to see inflation in the whites of their eyes

He’s the Man with the Golden Touch. As Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke went public with a Fed policy statement and press conference Wednesday, traders watched as every word seemed to add a few cents to the price of gold. After hitting US$1,530 late in trading, gold backed back down a bit, but the story was clear.

The euro gained and U.S. treasury bond yields went up. Also moving in directions that were inconsistent with the Fed chairman’s world view was the American dollar, which went down.

Read More »

Assessment of party leaders

By Alan Zelnicker

Is Stephen Harper a good CEO? Could Michael Ignatieff be a better chief executive? What about Jack Layton?

As executive headhunters, we size up candidates for top corporate roles and make recommendations to clients every day. At election time, we assess the party leaders the same way we evaluate top corporate candidates. We find this gives clarity as we head to the polling station. After all, a number of the skills required of a prime minister are akin to what is needed to lead a corporation.

As recruiters, we’ve sifted through the candidates’ qualifications and we’re ready to present our findings to our client (you, the electorate).

Read More »