EDMONTON— A new fact sheet released this morning by the University of Alberta’s Parkland Institute says that the “flat tax,” introduced by Ralph Klein in 2001, is costing the province in excess of $5 billion a year.  Given the projected deficit of $4.3 billion this year, simply returning to the progressive tax structure that existed in 1999 would be more than enough to move the province from a deficit budget to a surplus budget.

EDMONTON—Canada’s inability to play a leadership role at international climate change negotiations is just one of many negative consequences of an energy sector that is dominated by large for-profit corporations, and we need to begin exploring alternate business models for the industry. This is a key message of a new discussion paper released today by Alberta’s Parkland Institute in conjunction with the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.

Canada is currently the most vulnerable country in the industrial world to short-term oil supply crises, and we need to establish strategic petroleum reserves to remedy the problem. This is the key finding of a report released today by Alberta’s Parkland Institute in conjunction with the Polaris Institute.

Canadian civil society organizations, including Alberta’s Parkland Institute, call upon Canada’s political leaders to respond clearly and unequivocally to US presidential candidate Barack Obama’s challenge to renegotiate NAFTA during this week’s Federal Leaders debates.

Alberta’s aging baby boomers will not make public health care unaffordable or unsustainable. This is the key finding of a report released today by the University of Alberta’s Parkland Institute.

Despite the fact that we are running out of natural gas, and that we import 49% of the oil we consume, NAFTA dictates that Canada’s government cannot reduce the percentage of oil and gas we now export to the United States even in times of domestic shortages. A new report released today by the University of Alberta’s Parkland Institute and the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) says that the only solution to this and other potential scenarios is for Canada to pull out of NAFTA’s ‘proportionality’ clause.