Senior Economist, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, based in Vancouver. Views posted are those of Marc only.

Vancouver
Joined June 2011
New in @ccpa's BC election series: Rachel Pettigrew argues against law-and-order approaches to addictions and mental health, in favour of an evidence-based humane approach grounded in appropriately-funded public services. policyalternatives.ca/news-r…
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"The real threat is a political system that repeatedly forces First Nations to prove and defend our rights in court instead of providing a durable, co-developed framework for governments to work together. This is a problem DRIPA has begun to address." policyalternatives.ca/news-r…
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Anxious about your right-wing uncle trashing BC's public auto insurance system during Thanksgiving dinner? We got you covered. New post looks at the numbers behind ICBC and the overall benefits of public auto insurance policyalternatives.ca/news-r…
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With the election promises starting to fly, here's a primer on BC's fiscal situation. It's not as bad as you've heard but some tough trade-offs will need to be made in the 2027 budget. policyalternatives.ca/news-r…
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This is a great, balanced overview of the so-called 'mega' depreciation deduction announced by the federal govt, from @MarcLeeYVR at @CCPA_National: policyalternatives.ca/news-r…. Including super-long-lived petroleum assets (pipelines & LNG plants) is dubious & harmful to the climate.
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So we are emptying the public treasury to subsidize more pipelines, more LNG terminals, more data centres? Cool cool cool cool cool cool.
New from me: a closer look at the new Productivity Mega Deduction from last week's investment summit. The problem is less it won’t spur investment but its enormous climate and environmental side effects, and substantial fiscal cost to the federal budget. policyalternatives.ca/news-r…
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New from me: a closer look at the new Productivity Mega Deduction from last week's investment summit. The problem is less it won’t spur investment but its enormous climate and environmental side effects, and substantial fiscal cost to the federal budget. policyalternatives.ca/news-r…
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With a possible election in BC, now is a good time to remind the govt of its promise to expand public long-term care. The need is more urgent than ever, but govt deferred construction on 7 new facilities. Our new report explains why this won't save $$: centreforfuturework.ca/2026/… /2
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Huge turnout in Vancouver tonite for the 2026 Rosenbluth Lecture, hosted by ⁦@CCPA_National⁩. Speakers are Linda McQuaig and Neil Brooks speaking from their blockbuster new book, ‘Cancelling Billionaires.’ Inspiring and pragmatic. #cdnpoli #canlab
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Five progressive trade experts will put our heads together in a webinar at 12noon ET tomorrow to make sense of the new eruption in Trump’s trade war, and brainstorm progressive ways forward. Register below 👇. Thanks @ccpa for hosting. us02web.zoom.us/webinar/regi…
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New piece from Stuart Trew and myself reviews the bad deal Canada walked away from and looks to what comes next: the new section 338 tariffs; Canadian retaliation; and the need for deeper industrial and trade policies policyalternatives.ca/news-r…
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New for me: a long read on Western Canada‘s push to be an energy superpower, including the new pipeline, CCS, LNG and more. I break down the pertinent details and numbers from the new federal deals with Alberta and BC, and link back to climate. policyalternatives.ca/news-r…
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New post from me on trade takes stock of the new Trump trade war play. A review of the new tariffs, how they fit in with the previous Trump tariffs, and the bigger renegotiation of the Canada United States Mexico agreement. policyalternatives.ca/news-r…
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New post looks at the BC and federal government's plan to bail out condo developers. I review what we know so far and put numbers to the big gap between home prices and incomes for ordinary working people. policyalternatives.ca/news-r…
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New from me: a piece revisiting the issue of foreign ownership in historical context and for our current political moment. I review the key data and pitch a few ideas for reform: policyalternatives.ca/news-r…
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