Quebec’s high level of taxation and its effect.

Tax Freedom Day 2006.

The economic effects of business subsidies.

Léger Marketing poll commissioned by the Montreal Economic Institute.

Although subsidies are often criticized for their undesirable economic effects and for the way they discriminate in favour of particular sectors or firms, they maintain a strong presence in our economy. Governments not only seem incapable of trimming them but tend to invest in new forms of business assistance that are subtler and harder to evaluate, leaving them less open to reproach. The concept of subsidies includes not only direct dollar transfers but also other forms of aid that do not involve actual disbursements or that are considered as investment rather than spending. While disbursements are easy to measure, other types of subsidy are merely implicit, and precise data on their extent are often unavailable.

Debate between MEI’s Valentin Petkatchin and Attac-Québec’s Robert Jasmin.

The role of taxes in the prices of gasoline.

Si le gouvernement peut trouver quelques centaines de millions de dollars à consacrer à autre chose qu’à des dépenses additionnelles, il devrait donc réduire les impôts au lieu de les consacrer à un fonds des générations. La dette publique du Québec est certainement préoccupante, mais elle continue de diminuer en pourcentage du PIB et malgré l’équilibre précaire actuel, il y a longtemps que le gouvernement du Québec ne «paie plus l’épicerie» en s’endettant.

Debate between Norma Kozhaya, Economist at the MEI, and Pierre Lefebvre, Professor of Economics at UQAM.

The issue of fiscal imbalance vs. tax payers.