The Hatchet Canada’s Corporate Welfare Catastrophe
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Mar 21, 2025 Laurent Carboneau, Director of Policy and Research at the Canadian Council of Innovators, and author of 'At the Trough', dives into Canada's intricate web of corporate welfare. He discusses how government subsidies often fail to yield economic benefits, urging a reevaluation of Canada's industrial strategies. Carboneau also critiques the effectiveness of the super cluster policy and its impact on both large corporations and small businesses. The dialogue touches on historical perspectives, crony capitalism, and the pressing need for improved economic understanding to foster societal equity.
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Canada’s Resource Extraction Trap
- Canada has traditionally been a resource extraction economy with little manufacturing. - This economic model limits growth and innovation compared to other industrialized nations.
Corporate Subsidies Drain Public Funds
- More than half of corporate taxes in Canada return to businesses as subsidies. - Meanwhile, the personal tax burden is increasing for Canadians.
Railway Corruption and Waste
- The Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) was a huge government spending project with corruption and wasted money. - Later railways under Laurier spent even more but failed financially, leading to nationalization.
