Vol.
23 No. 3 September 1997
Articles:
Expected
Inflation in Canada 1988-1995: An Evaluation of Bank of Canada Credibility
and the Effect of Inflation Targets
David R. Johnson
Between
1988 and 1995 actual inflation in Canada fell while expected inflation
did not fall as rapidly. The Bank of Canada made three attempts to
signal its policy of lower inflation: a series of speeches from January
to June of 1988, the announcement of inflation targets in February
1991, and the reaffirmation of inflation targets in December 1993.
This
paper finds that only the 1988 speeches reduced expected inflation.
There is considerable evidence that inflation targets were credible
and that the 1993 change in Governor was handled so that expected
inflation both remained within the target range and continued to fall.
Tobacco Control Legislation and Resource Allocation Effects
Ian J. Irvine and William A. Sims
In December 1995 Health Canada published Tobacco Control: A Blueprint
to Protect the Health of Canadians which outlines the Government of
Canada's new strategy to reduce tobacco consumption. Bill C-71, The
Tobacco Act, was subsequently introduced, and received royal assent
in April, 1997. The objective of this paper is to use input-output
analysis to examine the resource allocation effects of a reduction
in tobacco consumption that would likely result from this legislation.
We find that significant reallocation effects may occur, and the employment
effects may be more severe in the public than in the private sector.
Parental Preferences for Work and Childcare
Roderic Beaujot
Data from the 1988 Child Care Survey are used to compare the actual
and preferred work and childcare patterns in families with children
under six years of age. Not only do parents manage work and childcare
in a variety of ways, but preferences differ considerably from daily
experiences. A variety of models are operating, with some preferring
more public childcare situations while others prefer part-time work
or other arrangements that permit parents to look after children themselves.
This suggests that policy should be flexible in supporting three types
of childcare: by the immediate family, by the formal sector, and by
the informal sector.
Falling Through the Cracks: Addressing the Needs of Individuals
Between Employment and Retirement
L. Suzanne LeBlanc and Julie Ann McMullin
In this paper, we examine some of the public policy that provides
financial support to individuals who are no longer in the labour force.
We argue that these programs neglect the specific needs of individuals
who are considered older by labour force standards and who are yet
too young to collect full pension benefits. We show that the potential
exists for these workers to fall through the cracks of public policy,
leaving them with a financially insecure future. Finally, we explore
some of the programs that have been used in other countries to address
the needs of this group.
Gender Equal Legislatures: Evaluating the Proposed Nunavut Electoral
System
Lisa Young
The
article outlines and evaluates a proposal for mandated gender parity
in the legislature of the new territory of Nunavut. It concludes that
the proposal is consistent with democratic rights and enhances desirable
relationships of representation and accountability between elector
and legislator. As such, the Nunavut proposal represents an innovative
reform that adapts Canadian political traditions to accommodate contemporary
social cleavages. Although the results of a 1997 referendum in Nunavut
preclude the implementation of the proposal in the new territory,
the proposal remains a relevant contribution to policy discussions
concerning the underrepresentation of women in elected office.
When in Rome ... Amending Canada's Copyright Act
Michael Rushton
Bill
C-32, An Act to Amend the Copyright Act, received royal assent on
25 April 1997. This was known as "Phase II" of copyright
reform, "Phase I" having been enacted in 1988. Along with
a number of technical amendments, there are four substantial changes
to copyright law in the bill: a clarification of exemptions for non-profit
institutions such as universities and libraries; stronger rules against
"parallel importation" of books; a levy on blank audio tapes,
with proceeds to go to copyright collectives; and "neighbouring
rights" for sound performers and their producers. There are two
distinct ways of thinking about copyright law. One focuses on the
natural rights of creators to the income generated by their works.
The other focuses on the economic problem of designing a copyright
regime which maximizes social welfare. The author suggests that while
both views of copyright have been put forward in Canada throughout
the debate over reform, the natural rights view had more influence
on the design of Bill C-32 than the economic view.
Issues And Commentaries
Getting
it Backward?: Economy and Welfare in Ontario 1985-1996
Thomas R. Klassen and Daniel Buchanan
The number of employable households on welfare remained steady in
the province of Ontario from 1985-89 and then increased nearly five-fold
in the early 1990s. Using labour market variables (employment levels
and population) and welfare variables we show that the employment
capacity of the economy expanded in 1985-89, contracting sharply during
the recession of the early 1990s. Our analysis suggests that government
policies sustained high caseloads in the 1980s, while in the 1990s
government policies limited the number of welfare cases, notwithstanding
that the employment capacity of the labour market remained low. We
conclude that in the past decade welfare policies in Ontario failed
to consider labour market conditions.
