Podcast appearances and mentions of roger currie

March 2019.  Roger Currie is a Canadian broadcaster who I have spoken to through the years on several radio stations.  He now has his own podcast.

The weekend is here...almost! Who's ready for the first ever playoff game in New Mosaic Stadium history? Rod and Luc give their final thoughts on the big game. @JDunk12 , Roger Currie, @ArashMadani and SJHL insider @Neugsie join them on the air.

Five million Canadians cross the border each year to fly from U.S. airports and save hundreds of dollars on the cost of a single vacation. Travelling from a Canadian airport costs more in several ways, especially when you add up airport fees and taxes. The U.S. sees air transportation as critical to economic growth, and subsidizes the cost. The Canadian government, on the other hand, appears to view air travel as a source of revenue. In addition to almost a billion dollars that Canadian air travellers pay out each year in fees and taxes, we also pay for airport security, fuel surcharges, and air traffic control. The basic fare is also higher for a number of other reasons. Higher wages and lower productivity in Canada are part of the story. Ottawa closely regulates the airline industry and limits service into many Canadian cities. Allowing more carriers to compete would go a long way in reducing the cost, and it would also generate economic growth. Studies show that when airlines are not allowed regular access to a community, it can cost the local economy hundreds of millions of dollars annually. More of a customer service approach is urgently needed. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on transportation policy, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Saskatchewan's Perry Bellegarde faces many challenges as the new National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations. The organization is in crisis after Shawn Atleo resigned from the post before the end of his term. A number of chiefs felt he acted too independently and was too cozy with the Harper government in Ottawa. Bellegarde’s first challenge will be to convince the chiefs that he needs a degree of independence to be effective, and that cooperation with government can result in meaningful change. If the national chief works closely with Ottawa, there may be movement on calls for a national inquiry on missing and murdered Indigenous women. Bellegarde also needs to focus on education. A majority of chiefs across the country want the government to kill Bill C-33, the Control of First Nations Education Act. They want the money for schools that would come with the legislation but don’t want government to dictate reform of the education system. Bellegarde should definitely encourage all First Nations to improve education on reserves. He should also strongly support a proposed First Nations Property Ownership Act, which will allow Indigenous communities to become more self-sufficient. Hopefully the new national chief will make good decisions and be supported by the Assembly of First Nations. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on Aboriginal policy, visit www.fcpp.org

Teachers in many Canadian classrooms are being encouraged to de-emphasize factual knowledge, in favour of a more hands-on discovery approach with students. But some basic facts will always be essential in making higher-level learning possible. For example, it's difficult for students to understand the grievances of the Métis, without knowing the facts about Louis Riel. A student who memorizes multiplication tables is more likely to succeed at algebra than one who uses a calculator to multiply 5 times 6. Students who don't know the tables are more likely to become bogged down and confused by the steps that are needed to solve such problems. For most of us there is a limit to the amount of information that can be easily stored in our memory. Something like learning a new phone number can be a struggle for a while. But once the number has been committed to our long-term memory, it's relatively easy to retrieve the information from our cognitive load. Students who know their basic facts experience less difficulty with cognitive load when solving more advanced problems. Knowledge is essential to the development of critical thinking skills. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on education, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Nothing is more important than giving our children a good education, but getting rid of bad teachers can be very difficult. A recent court case in California may change that in the United States. A judge in Los Angeles has declared as unconstitutional, the sections of those laws that give teachers tenure within two years, protecting them from dismissal, and allowing lay-offs only on the basis of seniority. Lawyers for a group of students argued successfully that the laws violate their rights to a quality education and equal opportunity to succeed, because they keep bad teachers in the classroom and push good ones out. In both Canada and the U.S, firing a teacher requires years of documentation, costs hundreds of thousands of dollars, and is still not guaranteed to succeed. In Alberta recently, a teachers’ association committee called for a two-year suspension for a teacher who terrorized students by kicking furniture and throwing objects at them. The case shows that even grossly inappropriate behaviour does not always result in dismissal. Good teachers should not be blamed for poor results due to factors beyond their control, but job security should not be guaranteed for incompetent or abusive teachers. If governments don’t address the problem, the answer may lie with the courts, as was the case in California. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on education policy, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Political leaders around the world have now spent more than two decades setting targets for reducing emissions of carbon dioxide that no one has any realistic hope of achieving. In the United Kingdom, emissions are being reduced at a rate of 1 percent per year. To meet the country's target by 2022, that reduction will have to happen at a rate 4 to 5 times that. Germany, which is building new coal-fired power plants, will also miss its 2020 emissions target. Alternatives like solar and wind are simply not able to produce enough reasonably-priced, reliable energy that's necessary for an advanced, industrial economy. Over the past 40 years, worldwide carbon dioxide emissions have taken a significant drop only once. That was during the depth of the global financial crisis in 2009. For the most part, when carbon dioxide emissions disappear, so do economic opportunities. Manufacturing jobs in sectors like the auto industry need dependable, affordable power - not the unreliable, expensive electricity that's generated by wind turbines. It's also important to remember the overall social cost in the debate over carbon dioxide emissions. Coal mining supports thousands of families, as do oil wells. Governments must pay more attention to the impact their environmental policies have on workers and their families. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on energy and environmental policy, visit www.fcpp.org.

Manitoba and the three Maritime provinces who rely on equalization payments as a source of revenue are getting a lot less than they used to. Equalization payments as a share of GDP have been declining significantly in all four provinces since 2009. In Manitoba, this means losses in the hundreds of millions of dollars. A decade ago, Quebec was the big winner in equalization, taking 37% of all such transfers, but Ontario was still a have-province in those days and they took nothing. Quebec’s share is continuing to increase significantly, and Ontario has been on the receiving end since 2009. This year, Quebec and Ontario together are receiving 67% of all equalization payments. The decrease in equalization payments to Manitoba and the Maritime provinces does not result from lower federal spending on transfers, which are at historically high levels. Canada’s two largest provinces have left less behind for the smaller provinces that rely on the program. It's a challenging time for these 'have not' provinces, and it's not about to change anytime soon. Each of them will have to address their own challenges through spending restraint and prudent fiscal management. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. To read our latest report on equalization, in partnership with the Atlantic Institute for Market Studies, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Winnipeg has a new mayor for the first time in a decade, and Brian Bowman wants to cut the salaries of councillors. There have also been moves to cut support staff for councillors, but more thought is needed on this one. Councillors in any municipality need to respond effectively to a wide range of queries from taxpayers, communicate the actions of council to the public, and be able to make proper informed decisions on key issues. To do all this, they need capable research staff to help study the issues. A proposal to give a $10,000 incentive to encourage Winnipeggers to buy downtown condominiums had to be reconsidered, and it appears there was not enough research behind the idea. Some councillors admitted to not fully understanding the proposal before they voted on it, and Council had to quietly reverse the decision. Increasing the research capability would help to build expertise on urban issues. Across Canada, there are relatively few people whose full-time job is to research policies affecting municipalities. Councillors should be free to spend more of their time taking care of their constituents rather than try to run entire offices on their own. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on issues facing local government, visit www.fcpp.org.

In local government, the assumption is often made that a good road system means that public transit must suffer, and vice versa. Sometime roadways and transit are at odds, when light rail or streetcar projects remove lanes of traffic, or when road design does not accommodate the needs of buses. But both needs can be accommodated at the same time. Since buses share the road with private vehicles, minimizing the conflict between the two is in everyone's interest. Adding dedicated bus lanes can greatly reduce the number of cars that might otherwise have to fight with the bus to get through. The recent election in Winnipeg saw a bit of a fight between those favouring improved transit, and some candidates who argued that better lanes for cars must be job one, but it doesn't have to be that way. When done right, expanded public transit can improve roadways for drivers and take some number of them off the street altogether, helping to relieve congestion. It will cost hundreds of millions of dollars, but when it's completed, Winnipeg’s rapid transit network will provide other cities with a good example of how to balance the needs of drivers and transit users. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on policy issues facing local governments, visit www.fcpp.org.

Over the decades, many communities in Canada have experimented with different versions of a curfew for children and adolescents. Most often, anyone under the age of 16 or 18 must be off the street by a specific time, such as 10pm. The aim is to reduce vandalism and other crimes that are often committed by teenagers, but most evidence suggests that they have not been effective in preventing crime. Sometimes crime does drop during curfew hours, but at the same time, crime will perhaps increase outside the boundaries of the curfew, or during non-curfew hours. Another problem is that youth who already have a criminal history are unlikely to obey the curfew. Meanwhile, teenagers who are not causing trouble are penalized even though they've done nothing wrong. A curfew also does nothing about the concern that young people spend too much time inside watching television or surfing the internet. Why prohibit law-abiding youth from going outside at night, maybe to watch the stars? Youth curfews can also perpetuate an unfair stereotype that all youth are delinquent and can't be trusted. Municipalities would do better to promote a positive relationship between youth and the police, rather than poisoning the relationship through disrespect. Communities should just say “no” to a youth curfew. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more of our work, visit www.fcpp.org.

It is estimated that as many as 300,000 young Canadians work as unpaid interns, and there are moves being made to regulate the practice as it affects university students. An NDP Member of Parliament has introduced a private member's bill aimed at curbing abuses, and the University of Toronto’s Student Union wants to see all unpaid internships banned. Many small businesses and non-profits simply can't afford to pay the interns, and they do provide students with valuable work experience. Rather than forbidding unpaid internships, governments should push universities to develop reasonable policies to protect the students. Students should be allowed to choose their hours and the employer should be required to pay transportation costs. Some universities might help the employer fund a student’s wages or reduce student fees while the student is working as an unpaid intern. Universities also need to develop protocols for students who may be taken advantage of in the workplace. Students should know that they need not suffer abuse in these situations to receive academic credits. Whatever policies are put in place, universities must be transparent to ensure that students know what to expect. Governments provide universities with the largest portion of their funding, so they have a responsibility to ensure that universities protect their students who are involved in internships. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on education policy, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Canadian air travellers have recently been hit with a $25 charge for checked baggage. WestJet moved first, and Air Canada followed suit just days later. Airlines struggled when the recession hit in 2008, and some of them turned to baggage fees for relief. But airlines in both Canada and the U.S. are once again profitable, and the baggage fees will only add to that profit. It could boost WestJet's revenues by more than $70 million over the next year, and by more than $40 million at Air Canada. So far in Canada, travellers are complaining about the new fees, but paying up. Surveys suggest that passengers are more concerned about things like a lack of legroom in the economy class. But there's still hope that Southwest Airlines may lead the way in the opposite direction. The large American carrier is roughly twice the size of the Air Canada, and it has a Bags Fly Free policy. They're thinking of expanding into Canada, and airports in this country would love to have them. This might encourage Air Canada and WestJet to reconsider baggage fees. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more of our work, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

As classes resume at Canada's universities, students are paying mandatory fees of as much as 200 dollars each to student unions. These organizations do several things for students. They administer health and dental plans, fund a variety of activities including sports teams, and they advocate on behalf of the students to the university administration and government on matters like tuition fees. But quite often student unions are dominated by political activists rather than acting as representatives of the whole student body on a university campus. They fund political causes not every student agrees with and often focus their efforts on issues that have almost nothing to do with post-secondary education. Our provincial governments should seriously consider following the example of Australia and New Zealand. In these countries, students now have a choice of whether to join a student union or not. In some cases, the students still have to pay for services formerly run by the unions, such as sports facilities, but student fees are not used to support political causes. Rather than imposing their own politics on students, student unions should have to listen to the needs and desires of their fellow students. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on post-secondary education, visit our website, www.fcpp.org.

In less than a month, it will be back to class on Canada's university campuses. Some schools like the University of Alberta, are more focused on research, while others, like Brandon University, concentrate more on teaching undergraduates. Students enrolled in research-oriented universities will soon discover that teaching undergraduates is not a high priority. In the research-oriented universities, students often find themselves in large classes, taught by less experienced recent graduates rather than veteran professors. Such professors tend to be valued more for the research they produce, rather than on their teaching skills. This means they have less time to focus on their students, even if they might want to. As a result, students in research-oriented universities are receiving little support to succeed, and one in five students drop out after their first year. Fewer than 60 percent of students in such universities will graduate within six years. The quality of undergraduate education should not be compromised. Students deserve excellent courses and the teaching support they need to graduate. Administrators and professors in research-universities should strive for new ways to strike a better balance between the two. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on education, visit our website, www.fcpp.org.

In five of Canada's provinces, including all three prairie provinces, barbers and hairstylists must be certified by a provincial regulatory body in order to do business. It's what's known as a compulsory trade. When a trade is voluntary, on the other hand, a person can seek certification if they desire but can legally work without it. The designations are not at all consistent across the country. In New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, bricklaying is a compulsory trade, but it is not in the western provinces. In most provinces, plumbing is a compulsory trade, but not in Manitoba. But you do have to be certified to be a nail technician in Manitoba. With peculiarities such as this, Canadians might well wonder if such bureaucratic regulation is really necessary. Voluntary certification is a useful option for workers who want to demonstrate to employers and clients that they have experience and adhere to professional standards, but the education and process that's needed to join a compulsory trade seems costly and somewhat irrelevant. Such barriers to employment should be removed, and workers should be free to offer the highest quality of service without burdensome red tape. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on policies affecting the workplace, visit our website, www.fcpp.org.

In the ongoing discussion about climate change, we are frequently misled about carbon, carbon dioxide and “carbon pollution.” Politicians and environmentalists use the terms interchangeably, when talking about the need to reduce our carbon emissions, or 'carbon footprint'. “Carbon” is the main building block in all fossil fuels including coal, and oil and gas. Our vehicles and power plants do not emit carbon, but emissions do contain carbon dioxide. Many blame carbon dioxide for global warming, but quite a few scientists disagree on the extent to which CO2 is responsible for climate change. They argue that carbon dioxide only plays a minor role in the evolution of the world's climate. They point out that over the centuries, an increase in CO2 has come after an increase in temperature, not the other way around. Carbon dioxide is essential to sustain life on earth by enabling plant growth, and it should not be regarded as a pollutant. Plants absorb CO2 and water and produce oxygen that humans and other animals need to breathe. Genuine pollutants, like sulfur dioxide which can cause acid rain, are dangerous for our health and for the environment. Instead of regulating CO2 and worrying needlessly about the phantom problem of 'carbon pollution', governments should focus on reducing pollutants that are real. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on environmental policy, please visit our website www.fcpp.org.

The Frontier Centre for Public Policy has released its first Canadian Freedom Index. It examines the state of personal, fiscal, and regulatory freedoms in all ten Canadian provinces, and it considers how provincial laws and regulations are affecting our daily lives. Many different factors are measured in each province, including freedom to choose schools, the regulation of alcohol, and property rights. Alberta took first place overall in the Index, with Saskatchewan and BC coming in second and third, and Manitoba in the middle of the pack in sixth place. Comparing regions of the country, Western and Central Canada fared well, while the Maritimes and Quebec lagged behind. The report strongly suggests that provinces which score well when it comes to freedoms are attracting more new residents, while provinces that do poorly on the Index are losing people. Quebec, with its high income tax, sales tax and excessive red tape, is struggling to keep people – especially those with entrepreneurial skills. A society that values democracy and personal freedom provides fertile ground for prosperity and innovation. We should be cautious about trading in personal liberty for temporary security. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. To find out more about the Freedom Index, please visit www.freedom-index.org or visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Canada’s old laws on prostitution were struck down by the Supreme Court last year because they forced sex workers into vulnerable and dangerous situations. Some commentators say that Harper government's new law might do the same thing, and end up back in the courts. If the new law is also struck down as unconstitutional, there might be little else that Ottawa can do to deal with prostitution. Parliament cannot legislate under the criminal code unless the law defines criminal offences and provides penalties. Such action must relate to public peace, order, security, health, and morality. If Ottawa is unable to outlaw some aspects of the sex trade without endangering sex workers, there is little they can do to regulate it. However provinces and municipalities have the power to regulate, since they have jurisdiction over property, civil rights and public health. Recent efforts to pass laws about prostitution have been based on the belief that sex workers are victims, and only provinces and local communities can take steps to help them get out of the business. We can expect to see local authorities play a greater role in prostitution issues in the near future in Canada. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more about our work, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Canadians have been deluged with reports about climate change for two decades, but polls still indicate that in most western countries, only about half of us believe in the science of the issue. Perhaps this is because most of what we hear comes from politicians and often exaggerated media reports, not from scientists. Al Gore’s movie, An Inconvenient Truth, is a good example. The Oscar-winning film was a mixture of entertainment and carefully crafted political propaganda, not a scientific work. As a politician, Gore is used to these kinds of tactics. In the short run, an emotional quote, a dramatic graph, or a snappy rebuttal in a debate, can help win an election. But climate change is a long term, issue-based campaign, and political spin will never hold up to serious scrutiny. The public DOES trust science - scientists are routinely near the top of ‘most trusted professions’ surveys. Politicians, on the other hand, are always near the bottom. If scientists really want to find the truth and win the public over, they need to tell the politicians to stop exaggerating their results for political gain, and let them get on with their work. We would all benefit from a climate change debate based on science, rather than politics. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on environmental policy, visit www.fcpp.org.

Manitoba may be the best place to live in Canada, if you enjoy being self-employed. The Frontier Centre for Public Policy has recently launched its first Entrepreneurial Index. It examines and ranks the best places in Canada, Australia, and New Zealand to be self-employed. The research involved analysis and comparison of a variety of laws and regulations that affect self-employed workers in the different provinces, states, and territories. Some of the factors that were examined include income tax withholding rules, medical insurance regulations, contract laws, and processes for resolving disputes. New Zealand enjoyed the top ranking overall, but Canada was close behind. Provinces that scored well were Manitoba, New Brunswick, the Northwest Territories and the northern territory of Nunavut. British Columbia and Quebec are the lowest ranked Canadian provinces, registering a similar low ranking to states and territories in Australia. The research suggests that self-employment may represent up to 25% of the workforce in most major developed countries. All of us in Canada, and our elected officials should consider the importance of self-employment and entrepreneurship, and the impact that regulation can have on the wider economy. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. To find out more about the Entrepreneurial Index, go to: www.entrepreneurial-index.org. Or visit our main website www.fcpp.org

Gender roles in Canadian society have changed dramatically over the decades. With women participating more fully in the workforce, men are taking on more of the responsibility of child care. Despite this change in family dynamics, the courts still treat mothers and fathers quite differently. In the event of a split, primary custody is almost always awarded to the mother. The courts seem to assume that the mother is the better parent and a father’s most important contribution is financial support. Child support is important, but enforcement can pose a great burden on low-income fathers. While the law does allow for monthly child support payments to be reduced in cases of financial hardship or shared parenting, some judges don't always agree to reducing the monthly payment. The notion of deadbeat dads seems deeply ingrained, but over 80% of fathers make support payments on-time and in the full amount. Courts need to recognize that fathers contribute much more than financial resources to their children. Studies have repeatedly shown that children do better with both parents actively involved in their lives. Judges should aim to see that children maintain relationships with all significant people in their lives. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. To download a copy of the book Ideology and Dysfunction in Family Law, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

With debts of more than $18 Billion, the city of Detroit was declared bankrupt last year, but it's not the largest American city to ever face such a crisis. New York filed for bankruptcy in 1975 but the process was stopped at the last-minute. Detroit is also not alone in dealing with dramatic loss of population. St. Louis has lost a larger share of its population, yet remains fiscally solvent. Serious financial stress is becoming a major problem for other American cities, including Los Angeles, San Diego, and San Jose. Research shows a strong association between large population and both higher taxes and higher per capita spending. As governments become larger, the individual voter becomes less relevant, and less engaged in the community. When this happens, organized special interests make more demands and seem to exert greater influence. As municipal spending rises, residents resist tax increases. Then cities have to borrow more, and eventually they default on their debt. Such problems have mostly been avoided where local governments are smaller, because elected officials remain more responsive to the needs of the voters. The best chance for the future in Detroit may be in multiple, independent local jurisdictions. Canadians should pay close attention to what happens to large American cities and strive to keep governments here more local. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on local government, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

The idea of “buying local” is becoming increasingly popular among Canadians. Purchasing food from a local farmer or a product from a small business is often more gratifying than lining up at a large franchise. Sometimes local products are preferred to imports, because the products are fresher or simply better. But the push to “buy local” can become a problem when people rail against large chains and foreign products. Pushback against products because they aren’t local can have negative unintended consequences. Relying too heavily on locally-grown food creates a dilemma when crops fail because of bad weather, resulting in shortages and higher prices. Global trade which allows food to move all over the world gives us greater variety for our diet, as well as food security. Large scale farming can generally produce more food per acre, while using less energy than small scale local farming. Large retailers are able to sell some goods at a lower price, saving consumers a lot of money in the long run. Some people cannot afford to pay twice as much for their groceries and other necessities. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. And please visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Custom band elections on First Nations are difficult for many Canadians to understand. Recently, the Garden Hill First Nation in Manitoba adopted new election rules that prevent anyone under the age of 50 from running for chief, and anyone under the age of 40 from running for band councillor. Also, anyone in a common law relationship is not allowed to run for office. It means that 80% of the Garden Hill community is not eligible to run for chief or councillor. As a custom band, Garden Hill is not covered by the Indian Act rules on elections and has been allowed to develop its own election code. However, they are still obliged to comply with the Charter of Rights and Freedoms in Canada's constitution. The Charter does not allow discrimination based on age or marital status. But Ottawa's hands are tied, and any band member who feels that their charter rights have been violated must take their case to court. Custom elections offer a degree of self-government, but they can also generate problems. A possible solution might be to establish an independent First Nations electoral commission to develop custom codes that satisfy the Charter. If election codes complied with the Charter, more Canadians would accept custom band elections because they would be more fair. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on first nations policy, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

All Canadian provinces have laws in place that punish people for texting or talking on cellphones while driving. But the rising number of tickets indicates people are just not listening. Jurisdictions with distracted driving laws have actually seen an increase in collisions compared to similar places that have no such laws. Police officers often catch drivers on their phones at stop lights where it is relatively safe, so drivers are tempted to dial while moving because they're less likely to get caught. These laws also encourage drivers to text or phone from their laps rather than at eye level, causing them to take their eyes completely off the road. The biggest danger in all of this is that using a phone divides the driver’s focus of attention, increasing the risk of a collision. The additional distraction of watching out for police officers only makes it worse. In some communities, officers are posing as panhandlers to catch distracted drivers. Rather than all this effort and expense focused on catching offenders, what's needed is more effective education so that people have a better understanding of the dangers involved. If Canadians do get in a collision because of driving distracted, they should be strongly penalized, but the current enforcement approach is not making things safer on the road. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. And please visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Unemployment is a chronic problem for Canada’s Aboriginal people, but Cold Lake First Nations in Alberta have achieved success that’s worth trumpeting. Band member James Blackman started the Primco Dene Group of Companies. The businesses are wholly owned by the Cold Lake band, includes a catering company, an emergency medical services company, and a well-servicing company, among others. So far the Primco Dene Group employs 650 people, and 500 of them are Aboriginal. Employees may try several different jobs before finding the one they prefer. The result is greater satisfaction for both employee and employer. Some employment policies are specifically designed to accommodate cultural needs. More bereavement days are allowed each year, reflecting the importance of funeral ceremonies in Aboriginal families. A high school diploma is not considered essential, and many employees have been successful in demonstrating their abilities in other ways. They also take a more relaxed approach to things like criminal records checks which can be a major hurdle for Aboriginals to clear. Businesses in Cold Lake do not believe that a past mistake should automatically prevent someone from moving forward into a better life. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on First Nations initiatives, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Politicians are fond of championing the middle class, but a recent study by Statistics Canada shows that middle income Canadians are doing relatively well compared with those who fall below the poverty line and younger Canadians are falling behind older cohorts. Traditional welfare programs have done little to help those who need it most. One option would be replacing transfer payments to provinces with cash transfers to individuals. Those transfers would go directly to every Canadian. Since it would be taxable, those above the income tax exemption level would see clawbacks that would ensure that low income Canadians benefit the most. Economists on both the left and the right now see cash transfers as an improvement over programs that lock many Canadians into a cycle of dependence. As far back at the 1970s, Manitoba showed some positive results with a guaranteed income pilot program in Dauphin, but there wasn’t much follow-up. Unconditional transfers also have less administrative cost than traditional assistance. Experience has shown that families are generally better at budgeting their money than governments. Additionally, recent graduates who rarely see any of the federal government’s largess would get a little bit of help during a time of high youth unemployment and increasing costs for first time home buyers. We need better outcomes in the fight against poverty, and transferring money directly to individuals would be a good start. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on income policy, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

More and more Canadians are being victimized by laws that allow authorities to seize assets that are suspected of being the proceeds of crime. In several provinces, property and other assets can be seized even without formal charges being laid, let alone a conviction in the case. Authorities only have to prove, based on a balance of probabilities, that property was acquired by illegal means or was used to help commit a crime. Such laws were originally created to help fight organized crime, but many now argue that the net is far too wide. An example is the story of Chad Squire who was stopped by the RCMP near Brooks Alberta in 2010. Police seized $27,000 from him, claiming that it must have been acquired illegally. In fact it was money he received from selling his house, but it took two years and an expensive court fight before it was returned. 74 year old Elizabeth Thomson of Calgary, watched as Alberta Justice obtained an order against her condo, accusing her son of using the property for criminal purposes. Later, it was revealed that the son had used her address on business documents without her knowledge. Such cases show that all law-abiding Canadians should receive the same protection against search and seizure which is found in the Criminal Code and the Charter of Rights. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on property rights, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

The use of textbooks in our schools has been declining in recent years. Many so-called ‘Progressive’ teachers argue that textbooks are a waste of money because all of their content is available online at the click of a mouse. These same educators argue that textbooks are full of biased and out-dated information. But in fact the quality of online information varies widely. Websites are a hit-and-miss collection of good and bad sources, while a well-written textbook can still organize the most important information in a way that most students can easily understand. Quality textbooks are subject to extensive review by experts in the field and representatives of various interest groups. This process weeds out mistakes and misrepresentations. Also, a quality textbook tends to include the perspective of more than one author. An excellent example is a history text called Shaping Canada. It provides a chronological overview of Canadian history and contains many excerpts from primary sources. While textbooks are undoubtedly useful, good teachers should never rely on them exclusively. Additional resources help to ensure that students learn more than what is simply written in a prescribed text. It is definitely too soon to consign textbooks to the recycling bin. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on education policy, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

People laughed when Toronto Mayor Mel Lastman called in the army to help clear snow in 1999. But snow and ice present many challenges for municipal government. When snow is plowed to clear the way for vehicles, parking becomes difficult, and icy sidewalks are also treacherous for pedestrians. After a recent snowstorm in Calgary, dozens of people were injured and taken to the hospital when they fell on icy streets and sidewalks. Snow removal is expensive, and some cities are determined to find a better way. Saskatoon and Edmonton are considering heated sidewalks, and they’re by no means the first winter communities to do so. Holland, Michigan installed a water recirculation system under downtown sidewalks. It has substantially reduced the need for plowing, sanding, and salting. Iceland is blessed with an abundance of geothermal energy, and Reykjavik uses it to keep sidewalks and streets clear of snow. And in BC, the Vancouver suburb of Richmond has begun a heated sidewalk project. Nearby businesses might be prepared to help pay the bill to attract customers. As we finally near the end of this brutal winter, it’s time to consider innovations like these. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on urban issues, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Many economists agree that free trade promotes economic growth, reduces poverty and benefits all countries that participate. The World Trade Organization is supposed to facilitate global trade by helping to reduce and eventually eliminate barriers like tariffs and quotas. The latest round of talks at the WTO have been going on for more than a decade, and at the same time, Canada and other countries have been working independently to broker their own agreements. Last fall, Canada signed the Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement with the European Union. Now Ottawa is close to finalizing a bilateral trade deal with South Korea. The government is also working on the Trans Pacific Partnership, an agreement that will include a total of twelve other countries. If these agreements pan out, it will be three significant deals that our country has negotiated outside the realm of the World Trade Organization. Ottawa appears to be succeeding in opening our borders to world markets, while the WTO process has stagnated. These smaller scale agreements are generally easier to achieve thanks to limiting the number of countries and competing interests involved in the negotiations. Perhaps Canada and our other trading partners are ready to move away from complicated multi-lateral talks when it comes to trade, if the WTO can no longer fulfill its mandate. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on trade policy, visit www.fcpp.org.

For more than 40 years, the government has prohibited offshore oil exploration in BC. Other regions have benefitted enormously by allowing and encouraging such development. Newfoundland and Labrador has gone from being a “have-not” to a prosperous province, thanks in large measure to offshore oil. Thirty percent of provincial revenue now comes from oil royalties. Norway is another great example. With a population of just over 5 million, they have been able to stock away half a trillion dollars in a heritage fund thanks to North Sea oil. Here in Canada we are fortunate to have significant oil and gas deposits in all three of the oceans that we touch on, although severe cold and a short drilling season make development a formidable challenge in the Arctic. Development off the coast of BC would be much easier by comparison. The relatively shallow water allows for well-established technologies and simpler practices than those used in the Gulf of Mexico, where the massive BP spill occurred four years ago. Given all the compelling evidence, the ongoing moratorium in BC on offshore exploration is robbing the province of economic opportunities. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. To learn more about energy policy, go to our website www.fcpp.org.

The Frontier Centre has released its 7th annual Local Government Performance Index. It measures 100 Canadian cities on their financial performance and overall transparency. Measuring almost 30,000 individual data points, the Index is designed to shed light on how Canada’s largest municipalities are performing in comparison to others across the country. This year Edmonton was ranked as the most transparent city in the country, along with Markham and Mississauga. Calgary, Lethbridge and Medicine Hat tied for 9th place, and Regina was 14th. Saskatoon and Kitchener are the most improved cities this year, both finishing together in the 22nd position, while the city of Winnipeg placed 47th out of 100. The Index presents absolute, per capita and per household figures for property taxes, debt levels, and total spending. After placing 5th last year, Toronto dropped down to 22nd place, despite getting the exact same score as last year. Average scores are improving across the country, meaning that cities need to improve their performance just to maintain their ranking. Financial transparency is a critical part of municipal government and is essential to ensure that public funds are used in a responsible manner. To learn more, and to see the details about your community’s score, visit www.lgpi.ca. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier.

Prince Edward Island is Canada’s smallest province, but people who live there receive three times as much as they contribute in premiums, when they collect Employment Insurance. EI benefits in all of Atlantic Canada greatly outweigh the premiums paid. The difference each year is about 1.5 billion dollars. Special benefits for fishers on P.E.I. totalled 13.5 million dollars in 2011, and it’s a benefit that’s not available to other self-employed Canadians. The issue of regional subsidies is much larger than that. Spending by Ottawa on training programs in PEI in 2011 was nearly triple what was spent on a per capita basis in Ontario and Alberta. Toronto’s Pearson Airport pays almost 50% of all rents paid by airports in Canada, even though it handles less than 30% of all passengers in the country. The airport in Charlottetown pays no rent to Ottawa at all. The same regional disparities exist in other federal programs. Continuing down this path of economic dependency is unreasonable and risky. Many people who left the Atlantic region in search of better opportunities are now in agreement with those who argue that P.E.I. and the other Maritime provinces should contribute more to building a competitive Canada. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. To learn more about equalization, go to our website www.fcpp.org.

The Idle No More protests were in reaction to Ottawa’s agenda when it comes to Aboriginal policy. But there are a number of initiatives that First Nations can voluntarily opt into and benefit from. The First Nations Land Management Act is federal legislation that allows bands to control their own land and resources. In a similar vein, bands can be certified by the First Nations Financial Management Board. It allows them to borrow millions of dollars at preferential rates. First Nations can also be certified under the ISO 9001 program, an internationally recognized standard that makes communities more attractive to outside investors and businesses. The Membertou First Nation in Sydney Nova Scotia is a good example of a band that has benefited from this. Unfortunately, many First Nations are not even aware of some of these voluntary initiatives. The bands that have followed such a path can now boast that the majority of their revenues come from their own initiatives, rather than relying on federal policy bureaucrats. Rather than investing time and resources on initiatives that may ultimately be rejected, the government should do more to promote voluntary initiatives that will benefit First Nations. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on Aboriginal policy, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

All across Canada, but particularly on the prairies, builders complain about shortages of skilled trades people, but there’s a vast pool of unrealized potential among First Nations youth. Native reserves have a booming young population, and chronically high rates of unemployment. Governments and the private sector often turn to immigration to fill such needs, but the answer could be right in our own backyard. Obsolete regulations are one of the roadblocks that prevent this from happening. Provinces regulate the number of apprentices that can be hired based on the number of existing journeypersons who are ticketed to work in the various trades. These ratios require many companies to lay off apprentices or to leave positions vacant in many cases, for reasons that don’t make much sense. Most provinces are moving to ease these restrictions, and governments should focus on things like safety standards instead of regulating the rate of entry. Education requirements are also a problem. Most trades require a high school diploma which Aboriginal young people may not have for a number of reasons. Governments should introduce skills-based examinations as an alternative. Steps like these would ensure that aboriginal young people can be a key part of the solution to the skills shortage in Canada. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on Aboriginal policy, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

There is renewed discussion in Alberta about building a high-speed rail link between Calgary and Edmonton. The idea has been around in one form or another for more than 30 years, but experience elsewhere in the world suggests that a high-speed train on the Canadian prairies simply would not be economically viable. Right now only two high-speed rail lines are profitable: the Tokyo-Osaka corridor in Japan and the Paris-Lyon bullet train in France. Both areas are much more densely populated than the corridor in Alberta. Even if there were more potential riders, a high-speed train cannot compete with the alternative of driving in a private vehicle along that route. Most people will find it cheaper and more convenient to drive or carpool than pay for a train ticket, especially when you consider that they would still need to rent a car or take a taxi to their final destination. Environmental considerations are not a significant plus. High-speed trains take more energy than conventional trains, planes or motor vehicles. The Alberta government simply cannot afford such an unproven high risk venture that taxpayers would inevitably end up subsidizing. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on transportation policy, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Environmentalists frequently raise alarms about fracking, and Canadians should be given more information about the process. There are naturally-occurring fractures, but often rock formations are too impermeable to allow oil and gas to be extracted. A fracking fluid is pumped into the formation, causing cracks to form. The resulting fractures allow oil and gas to flow into the well. Some people are worried that frac fluids could contaminate groundwater. The danger is avoided when drill wells are properly cased as they penetrate aquifers to reach the rocks below. The fractures are deeper than the aquifers, and the thick mass of rock in between prevents undesirable fluids from seeping into the water. Over millions of years, some gas can naturally seep through rock mass to reach water, but fracking has nothing to do with it. Some people are worried that fracking causes earthquakes. Earth tremors do occur in drilling operations, but most often they are too small to be felt. Precision instruments are used to monitor any tremors. Fracking has been around for decades, and in recent years it has greatly increased the supply of natural gas, and lowered the price for all of us. The technology is allowing North America to be more self-sufficient in energy, and it’s creating export opportunities for Canada. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on energy policy, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Many Canadian parents reject home-schooling as a viable option for their children because they don’t want them to be socially awkward. But nothing inherent about home-schooling points to that as a likely result. Home-schooled children have contact with neighbours, in extracurricular activities, and with children of co-workers and other home-schoolers. Some people assume that parents who home-school their kids want to instill specific religious beliefs, but there are many different motivations for homeschooling. Some dislike the values that are promoted in schools, others have high academic standards and little faith in the public school curriculum. Often, parents want to focus on a particular strength or weakness in a child in a way that a teacher with responsibility for a whole class cannot. Athletes and musicians often prefer home-schooling so they have more time for training. Homeschooled children can often accomplish a lot more in a shorter period of time because they are not spending hours riding buses or interacting with peers outside the classroom. Home-schooling provides students with opportunities to pursue different interests with a variety of people, rather than becoming locked into a group of students who are same age. Parents who are concerned about the quality of their children’s education, should keep an open mind when it comes to home-schooling as a possible option. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again in 2014 for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on education, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

A rural Manitoba woman was recently fined $10 for sending her two kids to daycare with a lunch that was deemed nutritionally unbalanced according to Canada’s Food Guide. The meal included roast beef, potatoes, carrots, an orange and milk. To comply with provincial rules, the daycare added Ritz crackers because a grain product was missing. The Food Guide recommends that Canadians eat specific amounts of vegetables and fruits; grain; milk products; and meat. There are some obvious problems with the Guide. It fails to recognize similarities across food groups, and the vast difference between different foods within the groups. One might substitute a grain with fruit, since fruits can contain as least as much dietary fiber as many grain products. On the other hand, rye bread is more nutritious than white bread, and spinach is more vitamin-rich than iceberg lettuce. Nutritional needs can also vary dramatically from one person to another because people have different body types. We have a responsibility to see that children are properly nourished. But the focus should be on basic food safety, and requiring food producers to do a good job of providing dietary information to consumers. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on nutrition, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Environmental extremists like the public to believe that the debate over the oil sands is a choice between economic rewards or a healthy environment. But Canada and Alberta can have both. The oil sands are being developed in a responsible way. Only three percent of the surface area is minable, and only a fraction of that is being dug up. The land is restored after mining operations are finished. Steam-assisted gravity drainage is used whenever possible, with a relatively small environmental impact because it involves no mining at all. Activists say the oil sands are a major contributor to climate change. The truth is, Canada only generates about 2 percent of global emissions of greenhouse gases, and less than 8 percent of that comes from the oil sands. The public is told that oil-sands operations require huge amounts of fresh water. The truth is, the city of Toronto consumes more than twice as much water, and up to 95 percent of the water used by the oil sands is recycled. The oil sands employ thousands of people and provide much needed energy. Canadians cannot afford to allow the propaganda being put out by extremists to go unchallenged. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on energy and the environment, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

New school trustees were elected in Alberta recently, and several of them have identified class size as a major public concern. But they and their colleagues in Manitoba and Saskatchewan should be looking at the larger picture. If school boards would focus on how to direct funds appropriately, the issue of class size would take care of itself. All across the region, resources are flowing into schools that are now half-empty. If funding followed each student directly, higher enrolments would automatically mean larger budgets, and lower enrolments would mean lower budgets. Classrooms with 40 kids or more would not exist if schools had a budget directly tied to the number of students. Such a funding model would also mean that parents could send their children to any type of school they wish without having to pay extra for the best possible education. Right now, some parents are paying private school fees as well as property taxes to support public schools that their kids don’t attend. Rethinking the way we pay for education on the prairies is long overdue. It is the key to providing students with quality education. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on education, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Newfoundland's Finance Minister has suddenly resigned. He disagreed with the Premier's risky and increasingly expensive quest to have a Crown Corporation, Nalcor, build and transmit power from Muskrat Falls, Labrador, to export to the eastern seaboard states. Ontario wasted 1.2-billion dollars by supporting, then cancelling, two generating stations. Before that, the province offered contracts to solar power operators at a price six times the average Ontario rate, right before the cost of solar panels collapsed. This in a province where consumers are paying off 20-billion dollars of losses on nuclear plants and power contracts. Now Manitoba's government is flirting with financial disaster with its 34-billion dollar hydro dam building plan. Construction cost estimates have more than doubled, while cheap shale gas in the U.S. has collapsed the power prices Manitoba Hydro can expect to receive. Knowledgeable critics have warned consumers that their rates could end up tripling if the plan is fully implemented. And, in B.C., consumers face a 26 percent rate hike, due to past creative accounting. If consumers were served by private companies with shareholders' money at risk, not consumers’ or taxpayers’, fewer financially-ruinous electricity schemes by politicians would be possible. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on electricity and crown corporation policy, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

The majority of the world’s population now live in cities. People leave poor rural areas hoping for a better life with more economic possibilities in urban areas. The most successful cities are able to handle population growth and naturally expand their physical size. Now, city planners are concerned about problems related to urban sprawl. Some argue that cities should grow ‘upward’ rather than ‘outward’ – a policy known as Densification. It tries to establish urban boundaries and replace private vehicles with mass transit, as well walking and cycling. However, Densification has difficulties of its own, such as greater traffic congestion and poor air quality. Transit can play a crucial role in moving people downtown, but it cannot effectively compete with the automobile in a city that is already spread out. Densification is also a major factor in higher house prices. Families with better incomes end up buying cheaper or smaller houses that could have otherwise gone to a low-income family, who may now be pushed out of housing completely. In short, Densification reduces mobility and increases the cost of living. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on urban planning, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Anyone in Canada who wants to be a teacher must obtain a teaching certificate. Nowadays most teachers must complete a Bachelor of Education degree from an accredited university or teachers college. Increasingly, those schools that train teachers are getting poor marks from their own students and are held in low regard by other faculties on the same campus. Instead of spending their time learning effective ways of teaching and learning, schools tend to focus on so-called progressive processes of learning. The emphasis is on facilitating experiences, rather than providing basic knowledge. A research associate from the Frontier Centre recently took part in a graduate level course on education foundations. The professor allowed students to write poems and draw pictures to complete their assignments. She also said they were free to suggest their own grade in the course. Provincial departments of Education should explore alternative options to certify teachers. Competition would encourage education faculties to improve their instruction. Also, instead of tying salary increases to the completion of meaningless graduate courses, salaries should be linked to performance in the classroom. Children need well-equipped and grounded teachers, rather than those who are allowed to set their own marks. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on education, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Many air travelers are understandably annoyed when they get bumped from a flight because the airline has overbooked. But it has become a necessary way of life, and it actually reduces the cost of flying for everyone. Air Canada and other airlines offer refundable tickets. This gives passengers the freedom to change their tickets and almost 10% of them never show up for their flights. The airlines use ingenious software to help predict who the no-shows will be and where they will be flying. Business passengers are the number one no-shows, while people on holiday will almost always show up at the gate. Other common no-shows are people who over-sleep, or can’t get to the airport because of poor weather. Costs are high and profit margins are very slim in the airline business. Air Canada pays out a billion dollars a year in airport and navigation fees alone. Overbooking has proven to be an effective way of maximizing revenue and staying competitive. And by no means does everyone complain about overbooking. For every unhappy traveler, there are nine others who will gladly volunteer to forgo their tickets in exchange for compensation. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on travel and transportation, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

For too long, Canadians have watched as governments have entered into bad and costly labour agreements with public sector employees. Now that the politicians can no longer afford these expensive contracts, the rights of public sector workers are being altered without appropriate justification. The Government of Alberta recently introduced Bills 45 and 46, which would limit the right to strike in the public sector and allow the government to impose contracts unilaterally. In Ontario last year, the government passed the ‘Putting Students First Act’. It imposed contracts on teachers and others in education, despite massive opposition. Ottawa is proposing drastic changes to the rights of federal workers in Bill C-4. Under this legislation, the government will be able to unilaterally expand the definition of the essential service and restrict rights to bargain collectively. Nobody likes to be inconvenienced by strikes or protests, but these are fundamental rights provided to workers under the Charter and various labour relations acts. It has become easy to blame unions for labour unrest, but governments are sometimes equally to blame. They have given in too often to union pressure. The process of making changes to the rights of workers must be as fair and transparent as possible. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on the public sector, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

More and more Canadians are prepared to pay a premium to buy food that is certified-organic. They believe in good faith that an objective process ensures that the food is authentic. They might be surprised to learn that the Canadian Food Inspection Agency allows any producer to use their organic labels as long as fees are paid and the paperwork is done. The government does not require actual testing to ensure that the food is free of things like pesticide or growth hormones. It was a similar story in the United States, but soon there will finally be random testing there to ensure that organic products are genuine and safe. The American Consumers Union once performed random tests and discovered that one-quarter of organic food contained prohibited substances. They urged the U S Department of Agriculture to introduce testing into the American organic program. In Canada, the Food Inspection Agency ran tests in secret and discovered that almost half of the samples contained prohibited pesticides. But they’re still not prepared to follow the American lead and require testing of organic food before giving producers a certificate. Food that is certified-organic should be verified scientifically, and not sold as such just because the producer has paid a fee. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on agricultural policy, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Ottawa has introduced Bill C-9, the First Nations Elections Act. It comes in response to concerns expressed by First Nations in Manitoba and Atlantic Canada about rules governing the election of chiefs and band councils. Among other things C-9 will allow First Nations to establish fixed election dates. It also cleans up the nominations process for chief and council, and provides for penalties for those who break the rules. The legislation extends the term for chiefs and councilors from two years to four. This is seen as a positive move, enabling bands to better engage in long-term planning, especially when it comes to economic development. With a two-year term, many councilors are perpetually worried about re-election. These are some of the concerns identified by individual band members in the Aboriginal Governance Index which is put together each year by the Frontier Centre. Elections are an important component of the survey. Bands who work to ensure fair and open elections are often the ones who are ranked highest. The provisions of Bill C-9 are voluntary. Bands must choose to opt in. Hopefully that will happen in aboriginal communities on the prairies. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on Aboriginal policy, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

The Canada-Europe Free Trade Agreement is a major milestone for the country. The potential impact will be hugely positive, especially for prairie agriculture. Among the greatest beneficiaries would be cattle ranchers in several provinces. Increased duty-free access to European markets could mean as much an additional $600 million a year in revenue. Similar gains are likely in canola, with a potential doubling of exports from 90 million dollars to 180 million dollars a year. Prairie wheat producers have traditionally focused on high-quality grain for the European market, but the removal of a tariff on low protein product will mean a greater opportunity for all farmers. Barley growers should also experience a boon. Not only will exports of malting increase, but even greater gains may be derived through feed sales to livestock producers. Canadian dairy producers who have long enjoyed the protection of supply management are upset about the increase in Europe’s cheese quota, and they are anxious to protect the high-end cheese market which might be jeopardized by the free trade agreement. But the deal has been signed, and once it’s ratified by the 28 member countries of the EU, Canadian agriculture will see a massive net benefit. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on agricultural policy, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Activists are continuing to work hard in an effort to block the construction of major oil pipelines like the proposed Northern Gateway project. As a result, oil companies have turned to alternatives, like moving crude by rail. But the tragedy at Lac Megantic, Quebec strongly suggests that such alternatives pose greater dangers to people and to the environment. Terrible spills have occurred in the past when oil moves across water by tanker. With fewer pipelines transporting Canadian oil across the country, we need to import more oil from overseas. Pipelines involve a much lower risk of spills and derailments. They can be routed away from populated areas. Modern pipelines also have leak-detection systems that will shut them down automatically if a rupture occurs. Shipping oil by rail, truck or tanker can also mean the release of more exhaust and pollutants into the atmosphere. Fuel is essential to heat our homes on the prairies. It also allows us to safely and quickly travel long distances, and it sustains our standard of living. Experience has shown that pipelines are the safest and most responsible way to transport fuel. I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier. For more on energy policy, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Roger Currie - Broadcaster & Storyteller by Food & Friends with Larry