In 2006, there was something like a 22,000 gap between the Census population in New Brunswick and the estimated population that year (roughly 729,900 during the Census and over 750,000 had been the estimate). By 2011, that has tightened significantly.…
Continue ReadingJob creation promises – more NB than salmon and fiddleheads
During the provincial election of 1982, all the political parties promised impressive job creation plans.The Conservatives promised 35,000 by 1986, the Liberals 20,000 by the end of 1983, and the NDP 17,000 (According to Richard Wilbur’s annual review of New Brunswick…
Continue ReadingBC’s natural gas strategy
I read this thing from cover to cover last night and it is pretty amazing the differences between New Brunswick and western Canada when it comes to natural gas development. The BC government is thrilled about the potential of shale…
Continue ReadingAre we entitled to our entitlements?
I use that phrase almost as much as the NYT columnist Gail Collins talks about Mitt and his trip to Canada with the dog strapped to the roof of his car. I think it is fair for Harper to be…
Continue ReadingThe importance of small business: Part 23
I have been saying for awhile now that the most important role of small business in a local economy is to foster competitive and dynamic local industries. Professional services is an excellent example of this. If a place…
Continue ReadingFederal austerity will hit hardest in places like New Brunswick
Did you know that New Brunswick is considerably more dependent on the old age security (OAS) program than Canada as a whole? NB generates about 1.9 percent of national employment income but receives 2.7 percent of the national OAS distribution.…
Continue ReadingRebuilding New Brunswick
I was struck by how many times David Alward used the term ‘rebuild’ in his SOTP address last week (reconstruction en française). It seems to me that the Premier and his advisers are trying to impress upon people the…
Continue ReadingThe Costco effect
During my visit to Freddy last week several people asked me about the Costco effect. I also read about local gas retailers in the Freddy area demanding the government set a minimum price for gas as Costco had eaten into…
Continue ReadingShould Maritimers pay more in taxes than Albertans? – Postscript
For anybody looking to take a strip off me for suggesting some kind of provincial personal tax harmonization – put away the pitchfork – I am not calling for this. What I am saying is that in my opinion the…
Continue ReadingDrowning in debt
There is a good article in the TJ today about the high debt load the average Canadian family faces these days. This piled on top of public debt and it would take decades and decades of determined effort to pay…
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