Canada’s health-care wait times hit 20 weeks in 2016 — longest ever recorded
Canadian patients waited longer than ever this year for medical treatment, finds a new study released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank. The study, an annual survey of physicians from across Canada, reports a median wait time of 20 weeks — the longest ever recorded...
A Letter to Trudeau From Young Researchers
More than 1500 early-career researchers in Canada and Canadian researchers abroad are sending an open letter to the Prime Minister and six Cabinet Ministers, calling for scientific rigour and transparency in Canada’s environmental and regulatory decision-making. “As the next generation of scientists in Canada, we are...
Sweden provides lessons on how to increase accessibility for low- and middle-income parents to more school choice
Amid continued calls in some provinces to reduce or even eliminate government funding of independent schools, policymakers could look to Sweden and its full government funding model that increases school choice for parents, particularly modest-income families, finds a new study by the Fraser Institute, an independent,...
Tragedy Struck and a Kootenay Mom Adapted
What do you do when your world changes in an instant? Following the tragic news of her husband’s skiing accident which left him a quadriplegic, Invermere’s own Cassy Campbell did what any mom would do: she decided to take her newly purchased hobby-business to the next level all while becoming her family’s primary breadwinner,...
Successful First Nations in Canada support economic development and are fiscally responsible
First Nations with the highest living standards capitalize on, rather than oppose the economic opportunities available to them, and are governed by long-serving, fiscally prudent leaders, finds a new study released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank. “The evidence is...
Special meeting may see city net grant for airport expansion
At a special meeting Friday at 12 p.m., city council unanimously voted in favour of applying for a grant that would help fund an expansion of the West Kootenay Regional Airport. The reason for the urgency and special meeting, according to city CAO John Malcolm, is that applications for the grant, offered by the BC Rural...
Do away with messy public tenders, pre-approve instead
News that's guaranteed to cheer the hearts of a small number of B.C. companies is word that they've been added to a list of pre-qualified suppliers to the B.C. government. The lists are intended to offer all the appearances of open and transparent procurement. They can be anything but. It's one way to get around the bad optics...
Almost four million international visitors to B.C. in 2016
The August international visitor numbers are in and they are proof that this past summer has been an exceptional time of growth for tourism in British Columbia. Year-to-date figures show an 11.5% increase in international visitors over the same time period last year (January to August). That represents close to four million...
Cyclocross Race at Red, October 30
Some new excitement is scheduled at Red -- the region's first cyclocross race ever! Hope for good weather on October 30, for the sake of cyclocross racers doing the "Hallocross" event. This is a fun race; for those rare individuals who don't already know all about it, here's a definition cribbed from Wikipedia:...
Ranked ballots would weaken the competitiveness of Canadian elections
Replacing Canada’s first-past-the-post electoral system with an alternative vote model — also known as ranked ballots — could severely weaken the competitiveness of federal elections, according to a new essay released as part of a book on electoral reform released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan ...
