Canada's per capita GDP continues to fall

[I am Groot]

Andrew Coyne's headlined article is more than a little depressing as it points out that Canada is, in comparison to other nations, falling in wealth as others surge past us. Our per capita GDP is lower than it was in 2014. And while our GDP itself rose last quarter, that's an illusory figure, brought about entirely by our increased population. The reason is a decades-long failure to grow productivity. And that has two sides to it. The first is a growing desire by politicians to buy votes by offering up more and more social spending and lowering taxes on the lower-income - lower producing - population, which means raising it on the higher-income- - higher producing - workers. That has helped drive many of the more skilled, talented, and high-production people out. Something like three-quarters of a million Canadians are legally working in the United States. And they're not digging ditches or cleaning floors. These are generally highly skilled people.

And that's the second side. Canada has replaced them with mass immigration since the 1980s. And the bulk of those coming in are low-skilled, low-production workers, if they work at all. The influx of people working low production jobs, driving cabs or uber, working at fast food restaurants, cleaning floors, working in retail and hotels has helped those businesses but avoided the kind of wholesale changes needed to increase productivity. Or as economist Doug Wright put it last year lack of cheap labour "forces employers to pay higher wages, provides better working conditions and drives the creative destruction that leads to higher productivity, more valuable products and better business models.”

Added to all this are the myriad new laws, regulations and brakes on business and industry which have increased the cost of business. The Trudeau government has been particularly enthusiastic at producing such laws and regulations.

https://archive.is/LO3jk

[Dougie93]

1 hour ago, I am Groot said:

Andrew Coyne's headlined article is more than a little depressing as it points out that Canada is, in comparison to other nations, falling in wealth as others surge past us.

sadly, Andrew Coyne is a Laurentian Elite who endorses the regime which is leading to this outcome

[Moonlight Graham]

3 minutes ago, Dougie93 said:

sadly, Andrew Coyne is a Laurentian Elite who endorses the regime which is leading to this outcome

You sure?  Doubtful to me

[Moonbox]

Andrew Coyne has not had much good to say about the Liberals lately. 

[Dougie93]

1 minute ago, Moonlight Graham said:

You sure?  Doubtful to me

Andrew Coyne is an unabashed Laurentian Elite Liberal apologist shill

as if they would let him be in the Commentariate at the CBC if he wasn't ?

[Moonlight Graham]

1 minute ago, Dougie93 said:

Andrew Coyne is an unabashed Laurentian Elite Liberal apologist shill

as if they would let him be in the Commentariate at the CBC if he wasn't ?

That doesn't appear the case based on his Twitter feed

[Dougie93]

Just now, Moonlight Graham said:

That doesn't appear the case based on his Twitter feed

certainly the rats are starting to abandon ship as they glean that Trudeau is the most hated man in Canadian history

but they will all come crawling back, soon as they choose a new Messianic leader

[I am Groot]

6 hours ago, Moonlight Graham said:

You sure?  Doubtful to me

No, he's mostly right. Coyne's related to Trudeau. His father was governor of the bank of Canada. He went to UofT's Trinity College, then the London School of Economics.

On economics, he's pretty good. But when it comes to any and all social policy issues he might as well be marching up the street with arms linked to Trudeau and Singh singing Solidarity Forever. He's a strong supporter of the Century Initiative. Which is why he never mentions immigration as a possible source of the problem Canada is facing with lack of production.

Edited March 1 by I am Groot

[Dougie93]

10 minutes ago, I am Groot said:

No, he's mostly right.

On economics, he's pretty good.

that doesn't preclude him from being a nauseating shill

for the regime which destroyed your country and left you wandering around in the rubble

there's no such thing as mostly catastrophic

[eyeball]

7 hours ago, Moonbox said:

Andrew Coyne has not had much good to say about the Liberals lately. 

Coyne once mentioned 'maybe there's something to this idea that politicians should wear cameras' on CBC's At Issue.

I'd suggested the idea in A Letter To The Editor I'd written to the National Post that made it to Letter of The Day just a few days before.

When Liberals were in charge under Chretien and we were up to our necks in fisheries mismanagement on the west coast.

[August1991]

Andrew Coyne is behind a paywall.

And the simple fact is that years ago, I was willing to pay a dollar or so each day to find what his editors chose to show me. I'm stilling willing to pay.

I miss reading Coyne. Nowadays, I can go elsewhere.

 

[CdnFox]

31 minutes ago, August1991 said:

Andrew Coyne is behind a paywall.

And the simple fact is that years ago, I was willing to pay a dollar or so each day to find what his editors chose to show me. I'm stilling willing to pay.

I miss reading Coyne. Nowadays, I can go elsewhere.

 

His link is not paywalled.

 

[August1991]

40 minutes ago, CdnFox said:

His link is not paywalled.

 

A smart editor would paywall such content - and then add a MarketPlace.

[eyeball]

23 minutes ago, August1991 said:

A smart editor would paywall such content - and then add a MarketPlace.

Even an internet novice can download a browser extension to get around a paywall.

I go to the market place for day old newspapers they're throwing out - for firing up my wood stove at home. They're still perfectly readable too.