MLI Newsletter
Vol. IV, No. 2
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EVENTS
March 21, 2013
Resolved: Liberal Party has no future in Canadian politics
May 9, 2013
Resolved: Wealth has too much power in Canada
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VIDEO
Check out MLI's short video on what led Canada to the huge fiscal reforms of the 1990s, the payoff they had, and what needs to be done so that we continue to reap the rewards of reform for years to come! | |
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Macdonald-Laurier Institute one of the top three new think tanks worldwide: Global think tank report |
 For the third consecutive year, the Macdonald-Laurier Institute (MLI) is rated one of the top new think tanks in the world and is the only Canadian think tank to receive such distinction. This year, MLI ranked in the Number Three spot, having debuted in the top 20 after only six months of operation and then having risen to the Number Five spot last year.
The annual rankings are released as part of the 2012 Global Go-To Think Tanks Report conducted by the Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program at the University of Pennsylvania's International Relations Program. In 2012 the Templeton Foundation also gave MLI one of only two awards worldwide for outstanding achievement by a young institute. |
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Time to overhaul the delivery and funding of health care, MacKinnon says | |
 In a recent and widely cited MLI study on health care reform, former Saskatchewan NDP Finance Minister Janice MacKinnon calls for a fundamental restructuring of the delivery and funding of Canadian health care. According to MacKinnon, health care costs are rising at a pace faster than all government revenues and are crowding out spending on education, poverty reduction, and the environment while creating inter-generational unfairness.
In the MLI study, Health Care Reform from the Cradle of Medicare, MacKinnon says the time has come for a co-payment system to be introduced to replace open-ended demand. The best way to levy those costs would be to use the income tax system with a ceiling of 3% of income. She also encourages more use of private clinics, homecare, as well as long-term and chronic care facilities, which would produce more appropriate and affordable care than hospitals. She includes in her study new data on how private clinics in Saskatchewan perform compared to hospitals in providing a number of specialized services. For the full study, click here.
The Globe and Mail, iPolitics, CTV, CBC, Global News, Huffington Post Canada, and major urban daily newspapers across the country covered the report. |
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Iran's nuclear bark bigger than its bite, but West must still act, experts say |
 Should Iran ever get nuclear weapons it is unlikely the regime will fire them itself or supply terrorist groups directly, according to two leading international security experts in a Straight Talk interview with MLI.
Alex Holstein, Managing Director of the Canadian intelligence publication, geopoliticalmonitor.com, and Peter Jones, Associate Professor in the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Ottawa, say it is not clear whether Iran's goal is to actually build a nuclear weapon of its own or simply acquire the capability to build one. Even if the answer is the latter, there remains a grey area.
"The threat needs to be taken seriously, but not as an imminent existential threat. It could become one in the long term, particularly when you consider the inflammatory remarks of many leaders within the Iranian regime," says Mr. Holstein.
What should be of concern, the two experts say, is the possibility of proliferation in the Middle East. Countries such as Saudi Arabia will want a counter balance if they conclude Iran is near becoming a nuclear threat. In fact, Saudi Arabia may even have a clandestine nuclear program already.
Click here to read the full Straight Talk interview on the Iranian nuclear weapons program. |
Streamline 'robotic' deportation procedures and beef up surveillance along Canada-US border, security expert suggests | |
 As the federal government considers border security options, expert Scott Newark weighs in and calls for a streamlined appeals process and enhanced intelligence led enforcement and surveillance along the physical border between Canada and the United States. These are the key recommendations in MLI's Straight Talk series on immigration and national security released last month. In the hard-hitting interviews with MLI, Newark recommends establishing a joint and integrated network of automated, analytical sensors deployed along the border. He recommends allocating financial resources for border agencies for interdiction, focusing on intelligence capacities, especially in Canada. He also calls for improving inter-agency and cross-border information sharing for law enforcement and security purposes. For more on Newark's recommendations, read each of the different in-depth interviews that examine in turn the broad issues affecting Canadian immigration, how well the Canadian government screens individuals, better ways at removing individuals who are in Canada illegally, the physical border, and recent immigration reforms.
Newark appeared on the Rutherford radio show in Alberta, Geoff Currier's radio show in Manitoba as well as on Sun TV to discuss further these recommendations. |
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Latest MLI index shows signs of economic growth pick-up in 2013 | |
 The latest MLI composite leading index showed encouraging signs of growth in the Canadian economy. The index rose 0.2% in December to match upward-revised gains in October and November and, just as importantly, the breadth of growth in the index increased significantly.
"Only one component contracted in December, compared with four declines the month before, while six increased and two were unchanged," says MLI Research Coordinator Philip Cross. He adds, "The gradual improvement in the leading index - from no growth in July to diffuse gains by year-end - points to a pick-up in economic growth as 2013 unfolds." Click here for the MLI index.
Reuters Canada, Bloomberg Businessweek and iPolitics covered MLI's latest index. Click here for more details. |
MLI celebrates its 3rd Annual Macdonald-Laurier Soir�e | |
 The Macdonald-Laurier Institute once again celebrated Canada's flag and political traditions at our annual Soir�e on February 13th at the historic Rideau Club. A sold out crowd of over 200 guests enjoyed fabulous food, conversation, and speakers. The Honourable Peter Milliken served as Honorary Chair, while the Honourable Jason Kenney, Minister of Citizen, Immigration and Multiculturalism, and Elizabeth May, leader of the Green Party of Canada, regaled the crowd with some wonderful stories about their favourite prime ministers (John George Diefenbaker and Sir John A. Macdonald respectively). The crowd included ministers, MPs, senators and many senior figures from business, the civil service, the media, the arts and members of the public, all of whom were there to help us celebrate another successful year for MLI.
We would like to thank our sponsors, Spectra Energy, Intuit, and iPolitics, for their support. For photos from our Soir�e, click here. Also, you can read about the evening's festivities in the Ottawa Citizen's Around Town column, The Hill Time's Party Central column, and iPolitics' In the City column. |
| More news from MLI | |
Here are a few highlights:
In his latest column for Postmedia, MLI's Brian Lee Crowley says it is time for Canada to close its free-trade deals and he appears on The Rutherford Radio Show to explain. He also writes about the future of global cities, explains why a simple majority is undemocratic where referenda on Quebec secession are concerned (also highlighted in the National Post's Full Pundit review), and he says Liberals and New Democrats were never natural soul mates.
Crowley then comments on the search for the next Bank of Canada Governor in an article published in Bloomberg and Postmedia newspapers across the country.
Fearful Symmetry: The Fall and Rise of Canada's Founding Values, MLI Managing Director Brian Lee Crowley's national bestselling book, tops the list of the five most important books to read on modern Canadian politics for the voice of the US foreign policy establishment, Foreign Affairs magazine.
MLI's Philip Cross says it is time to clean house at the Parliamentary Budget Office in an op-ed for the Financial Post. His previous Financial Post op-ed on French socialism travelled to France. Click here to read the original op-ed.
Cross then comments on the provincial default crisis in a Maclean's article on the topic. MLI author Marc Joffe is also quoted. The article is based on MLI's study on provincial solvency and federal obligations.
MLI Senior Fellow Ken Coates appeared on CTV News to discuss Chief Theresa Spence's hunger strike. Coates also was quoted in a Vancouver Sun article discussing whether Spence hurt or helped the aboriginal cause.
MLI Senior Fellow Alex Wilner follows up on his prison radicalization work in the Toronto Sun, BBC News, and Montreal Gazette. In an op-ed for The Globe and Mail, Wilner says Europe is in a position now to cripple Hezbollah following the Bulgarian bomb report.
MLI Senior Fellow Laura Dawson appeared on CBC's The House with Evan Soloman to discuss what the Canada-EU trade deal could mean to Canada.
MLI Senior Fellow and Brigadier-General James Cox appeared on Global News 16x9 program to discuss the use of unmanned aerial vehicles today. |
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