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By Finn Poschmann Published in the Financial Post on March 22, 2012 The federal budget due March 29 almost certainly will unveil the government’s thinking on the future of the Canadian covered bond market. This may prove strangely important, because covered bonds lie at the heart of one of the most contentious public policy issues in the Canadian financial system. The bonds are “covered” because…

May 31, 2012 — Reforms underway to the Canada Pension Plan (CPP), which impose higher penalties for opting to receive CPP before age 65 and greater rewards for delaying take-up until after 65, were meant to ensure people do not have a strong financial incentive to retire early and take-up CPP at age 60, according to a report from the C.D. Howe Institute.  In “Comparing Nest Eggs: How CPP…

November 1, 2012 – While Ottawa’s proposed reforms to the pension plans of federal employees and MPs are a move in the right direction, the deep flaws in these plans require more fundamental revisions, according to a report released today by the C.D. Howe Institute. In  “Federal Employee Pension Reforms: First Steps – on a Much Longer Journey,” authors William B.P. Robson and Alexandre…

Toronto, March 22 – Ontario faces a $19.7 billion unfunded liability at its Workplace Safety Insurance Board (WSIB) based on a fair-value accounting approach, according to a report from the C.D. Howe Institute. In “The Hole in Ontario’s Budget: WSIB’s Unfunded Liability,” authors Colin Busby and Finn Poschmann say the WSIB,  which levies employer premiums intended to fund benefits for…

Published in the Globe and Mail on April 26, 2012 By Gerard Boychuk Having won the Alberta election, Premier Alison Redford is now setting her sights on providing leadership in establishing the national agenda on health-care reform. In doing so, she won’t be able to ignore the issue of patient wait times. Wildrose may have lost the election, but it did propose some ideas in this regard that are…

March 13, 2012 – Ottawa should move to reform seniors’ benefits in the upcoming budget by letting recipients choose richer payments, later, from the Old Age Security and Guaranteed Income Supplement programs if they wish, according to a report from the C.D. Howe Institute.  In “What to do About Seniors’ Benefits in Canada: The Case for Letting Recipients Take Richer Payments Later,” William…