DO CITIES CREATE WEALTH?
Along with healthcare and taxation, a "new deal for cities" has become a theme of the 2004 federal election. This restructuring of the relationship between Ottawa and Canada’s municipalities has moved to centre stage, but are the arguments being put forward for new senior government intervention in the life of the country’s cities sound?
AIMS Online – June 10, 2004
Nation States and Economic Regions in the Global Network: Michael Gallis at AIMS. Also Nova Scotia's Knowlege Economy, Brian Lee Crowley on taxes and AIMS debates federal NDP leader Jack Layton before Atlantic mayors.
Atlantic Prosperity: AIMS debates Jack Layton before Atlantic Mayors in Moncton
Invited by outgoing Mayor Brian Murphy of Moncton to speak opposite Jack Layton, leader of the federal New Democratic Party, in a friendly debate about the future of Atlantic Canada, AIMS President Brian Lee Crowley presented an optimistic view of Atlantic Canada.
AIMS Fellow David Zitner – Health Care Innovator
In April of this year, AIMS' Health Policy Fellow Dr. David Zitner of Dalhousie University wrote an opinion piece for the National Post outlining the benefits of health care co-operatives. In the article, Dr. Zitner says "Patient co-ops are a way to inject more money into the health care system without raising taxes; to improve the quality, speed, efficiency and convenience of contacts with medical professionals via technology; and to encourage more specialization among various levels of professionals like primary care nurses working under a physician's supervision. Patient power starts here." The patient co-op seems to be an idea whose time has come in Nova Scotia. A patient co-operative is being proposed by a Pictou County doctor. In this article from the Truro Daily news, Dr. Zitner and Diane Kelderman, CEO of the Nova Scotia Co-operative Council say "the concept of community run, medical co-operatives are the wave of the future."
New AIMS Paper Sheds Light on Relationship Between Ottawa, Cities
Conclusions run counter to big spending ideas by politicians of all stripes
Revitalizing Atlantic Canada
For decades, federal politicians have shown up at election-time, declaring they are "here to help," thus presaging a disastrous policy outcome. Their well-meaning efforts, with promises to close the prosperity gap with the rest of the country, have retarded Atlantic Canada's economic convergence with the rest of Canada. For too long, "economic development policy" has been based on the government-knows-best model -- a concept that presumes bureaucrats , rather than entrepreneurs and investors, are the best judge of which business opportunities should be pursued . In this commentary in the National Post, AIMS' Director of Research, Don McIver outlines some of the foundation concepts behind AIMS' recent paper, You Can Get There From Here: How Ottawa Can Put Atlantic Canada on the Road to Prosperity.