Time for National Consultation on Poverty Reduction to Bear Fruit

12/06/2018

by Terrance Hunsley When the Trudeau government was elected, Jean Yves Duclos was appointed to cabinet with a mandate to implement increases to children’s benefits, and to consult with Canadians on further measures to reduce poverty and strengthen the middle class. The consultation has been underway for a year and a half, and Minister Duclos … More Time for National Consultation on Poverty Reduction to Bear Fruit

The problems are getting clearer; the solutions, ah… not so much: OECD in Canada to talk work and social policy

25/05/2018

  by Terrance Hunsley The OECD social policy ministers were in Canada on May 14 to talk about some familiar themes – economic inequality, precarious work, job destruction by automation, and how to adjust social protection and income redistribution. Underlying the exchange of views was the spreading concern about voter backlash and the disappearance of … More The problems are getting clearer; the solutions, ah… not so much: OECD in Canada to talk work and social policy

A Response to Poor Health and Low Income Among Older Workers

30/01/2018

by Terrance Hunsley 5th in a series; Futures Entwined: The Nation State and the Welfare State  … in the United States, for men born in 1930 those in the top 20 per cent of earners have a 5-year longer life expectancy than those in the bottom 50 per cent. For people born in 1960, the … More A Response to Poor Health and Low Income Among Older Workers

Are Canada and OECD Countries Reducing Income Inequality?

17/01/2018

    Fourth in a Series: Futures Entwined: The Nation State and the Welfare State by Terrance Hunsley Many people, especially social advocacy groups, feel that government commitments to the welfare state started a long period of retrenchment in the late seventies. The idea that a country can insulate its citizens from economic risk and … More Are Canada and OECD Countries Reducing Income Inequality?

Five 2018 Resolutions to Adapt Canada’s Social Infrastructure to the Global Digital Economy

22/12/2017

<strong><strong>Third in a series, Futures Entwined: The Nation State and the Welfare State by Terrance Hunsley For Ortega it was not a shared past that brought and kept diverse peoples together but a captivating vision for the future.(1) Justin Trudeau was elected in part because he was promising a bright future for a multicultural country … More Five 2018 Resolutions to Adapt Canada’s Social Infrastructure to the Global Digital Economy

Bland Pudding – The European Pillar of Social Rights

07/12/2017

Second in a series on: Futures Entwined: The nation-state and the welfare state by Terrance Hunsley How is the European Union dealing with inequality, the global economy, population movement, and political cracks in the state of the union? The EU is suffering from the close call with Greece. It is struggling with Brexit. It is … More Bland Pudding – The European Pillar of Social Rights

Futures Entwined: The Nation State and the Welfare State

23/11/2017

by Terrance Hunsley First in a Series It was a nice little quip for amateur philosophers. In Nixon’s 1972 visit to China, Premier Zhou Enlai was asked about the French Revolution and the development of democracy, and was reported to have replied “..it is too early to say.” Had that story not been debunked, those … More Futures Entwined: The Nation State and the Welfare State

The Sixties Scoop Court Decision Reveals Problems in Children’s Protective Services

19/10/2017

by Terrance Hunsley The federal government recently announced a fund to compensate indigenous people who as children were taken from their families and put up for adoption by non-indigenous families. It was in response to a class action court case filed on behalf of about 16000 children taken by child welfare authorities from reserves in … More The Sixties Scoop Court Decision Reveals Problems in Children’s Protective Services

Protecting Human Rights in Trade Agreements

27/09/2017

by Terrance Hunsley The NAFTA negotiations are likely to be a tough uphill slog, given Mr Trump’s belligerent stance. It is hard to see how Canada will make much headway on subjects such as gender rights, indigenous rights and environmental regulations. But these issues are affected by international trade agreements, as is the whole range … More Protecting Human Rights in Trade Agreements

Parliamentary Committee Reports on National Strategy for Poverty Reduction

19/06/2017

By Terrance Hunsley   HUMA – the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development, and the Status of Persons with Disabilities, (the name rolls right off the tongue, doesn’t it.) has spent a year hearing from Canadian experts, social advocates, municipal and business leaders, about what the federal government can do to … More Parliamentary Committee Reports on National Strategy for Poverty Reduction