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29 October 2024
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Quebec’s Fiscal Federalism Trilemma

Publication: Fiscal Federalism in Canada: Analysis, Evaluation, Prescription

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References

References

Anderson, George. 2010. Fiscal Federalism: A Comparative Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Behro, Ayaka, and Trevor Tombe. 2021. “Unpacking the Conservative Party’s Proposal to Boost Health Transfers to the Provinces.” Finances of the Nation, 24 August 2021. https://financesofthenation.ca/2021/08/24/unpacking-the-conservative-partys-proposal-to-boost-health-transfers-to-the-provinces/.
Béland, Daniel, André Lecours, Gregory P. Marchildon, Haizhen Mou, and M. Rose Olfert. 2017. Fiscal Federalism and Equalization Policy in Canada. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.
Beramendi, Pablo. 2012. The Political Geography of Inequality: Regions and Redistribution. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Boucher, François, and Alain Noël. 2021. “Introduction: Sub-State Nationalism and Fiscal Relations in Plurinational States.” In Fiscal Federalism in Multinational States: Autonomy, Equality, and Diversity, edited by François Boucher and Alain Noël, 3–31. Montreal and Kingston: McGill-Queen’s University Press.
Commission on Fiscal Imbalance (Séguin Commission). 2002a. Fiscal Imbalance in Canada: Historical Background. Quebec: Commission on Fiscal Imbalance.
– 2002b. A New Division of Canada’s Financial Resources: Report. Quebec: Commission on Fiscal Imbalance.
Council of the Federation. 2021. Increasing the Canada Health Transfer Will Help Make Provinces and Territories More Financially Sustainable over the Long Term: Report of the Provincial and Territorial Ministers of Finance to the Council of the Federation. Ottawa: Council of the Federation.
Courchene, Thomas. 2009. “Where Would Canada Be without Quebec?” Globe and Mail, 29 September 2009. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/where-would-canada-be-without-quebec/article1202906/.
– 2012. “Reflections on the Federal Spending Power: Practices, Principles, Perspectives.” In Canada: The State of the Federation 2008: Open Federalism and the Spending Power, edited by Thomas J. Courchene, John R. Allan, and Hoi Kong, 85–117. Montreal and Kingston: McGill-Queen’s University Press.
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Noël, Alain. 2000. “General Study of the Framework Agreement.” In The Canadian Social Union without Quebec: Eight Critical Analyses, edited by Alain G. Gagnon and Hugh Segal, 9–35. Montreal: Institute for Research on Public Policy.
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– 2005. “‘A Report That Almost No One Has Discussed:’ Early Responses to Quebec’s Commission on Fiscal Imbalance.” In Canadian Fiscal Arrangements: What Works, What Might Work Better, edited by Harvey Lazar, 127–51. Montreal and Kingston: McGill-Queen’s University Press.
– 2006. “Il suffisait de presque rien: Promises and Pitfalls of Open Federalism.” In Open Federalism: Interpretations, Significance, edited by Keith G. Banting, Roger Gibbins, Peter M. Leslie, Alain Noël, Richard Simeon, and Robert Young, 25–37. Kingston, ON: Institute of Intergovernmental Relations.
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Published In

Go to Fiscal Federalism in Canada
Fiscal Federalism in Canada: Analysis, Evaluation, Prescription
Pages: 395 - 412
Editors: André Lecours, Daniel Béland, Trevor Tombe, and Eric Champagne
ISBN (Online): 978-1-4875-5126-1
ISBN (Online): 978-1-4875-5128-5
ISBN (Print): 978-1-4875-5125-4
ISBN (Print): 978-1-4875-5124-7

History

Published in print: 30 December 2023
Published online: 29 October 2024

Keywords

  1. fiscal federalism
  2. equalization
  3. Canada Health Transfers
  4. Canada Social Transfer
  5. spending power
  6. education policy
  7. housing policy
  8. infrastructure
  9. childcare policy
  10. long-term care policy
  11. Canadian politics

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Fiscal Federalism in Canada. 2023, 395-412

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Featuring insights from some of the top specialists in the country, Fiscal Federalism in Canada unpacks numerous complexities of fiscal federalism in Canada. The book features key regional and provincial perspectives, while taking into account Indigenous realities, the three territories, and municipal affairs. The contributing authors go beyond the major federal transfers to examine the financing of education, cities, infrastructure, and housing.

This volume shows that fiscal federalism is much more than simply an aggregate of individual programs and transfers. It highlights the role of actors other than the federal and provincial governments and recalls the importance of territoriality. The book pays close attention to the political dimension of fiscal federalism in Canada, which is at the heart of how the federation functions and is essential to its governance. Fiscal federalism is central to the funding of critical programs through intergovernmental transfers, but it is also the focus of political debates on territorial redistribution. In tackling essential questions, Fiscal Federalism in Canada contributes to the so-called second-generation fiscal federalism literature, taking stock of the critical sociological and political issues at its core.

This volume provides a multidisciplinary examination of fiscal federalism in Canada and points to ways in which it can be improved.

  • Imprint: University of Toronto Press
  • Published: November 2023
  • Pages: 528

André Lecours is a professor of political studies at the University of Ottawa.

Daniel Béland is Director of the McGill Institute for the Study of Canada and James McGill Professor in the Department of Political Science at McGill University.

Trevor Tombe is a professor of economics and a research fellow at the School of Public Policy at the University of Calgary.

Eric Champagne is an associate professor of public administration at the School of Political Studies and the Director of the Centre on Governance at the University of Ottawa.

“This will stand as the landmark text in Canadian fiscal federalism, both for its comprehensive scope and for its interdisciplinary ambitions. And yet, it is lively! The contributors succeed in capturing the technical complexity of funding formulas without getting lost in them, because their gaze is always fixed on the wider policy and political choices and consequences.”

Peter Graefe, Associate Professor of Political Science, McMaster University

“Canadian federalism is complex and messy. The COVID-19 pandemic revealed how important fiscal federalism is for solving major policy problems, like health care or long-term care. The editors have brought together an impressive array of authors from different disciplines who have intimate knowledge of how fiscal federalism works at the national, regional, and local levels. This book is for anyone who wants to understand the issues, tensions, and choices in fiscal federalism. Highly recommended.”

Haizhen Mou, Professor at the Johnson-Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy, University of Saskatchewan

“This is a gem of a book on a topic that has preoccupied political decision-makers in Canada since the federation’s birth in 1867. Beyond dealing with the big three transfers – equalization, the Canada Health Transfer, and the Canada Social Transfer – the authors searchingly address under-researched areas including federal transfers to First Nations, infrastructure spending, early learning and childcare, and municipalities. Both scholars and decision-makers will benefit immensely from this comprehensive book.”

Gregory P. Marchildon, Professor Emeritus at the Institute of Health Policy, Management, and Evaluation, University of Toronto