Ontario will accomplish an impressive double-feat this year: The province is poised to shed its “have-not” status, while still scooping up hundreds of millions of dollars from the federal equalization program.
Celebrations probably won’t be cracking off in Ontario, though — the change in status is mostly due to the relatively poor economic situation in Alberta and Saskatchewan, rather than anything happening in the Ontario economy.
But, thanks to flattening inequality across Canada’s provinces, for the first time in nearly 10 years, Ontario will regain its status as a “have” province.
The federal equalization program’s ceiling on total payments — a cap brought in by the Harper government — is now being treated as a floor, with the federal government doling out extra “adjustment payments” to five provinces.
No comments:
Post a Comment