Patrick Brethour

The $33-billion question: How can Ottawa make the most of the rest of CEWS?

Bankrupt firms tapped federal wage subsidy despite long odds of survival

Chrystia Freeland defends wage subsidy as opposition accuses Liberals of ‘showering their rich Bay Street friends’

Did Ottawa need to spend billions to safeguard jobs?

Wage subsidies were meant to preserve jobs. In many cases, the $110.6-billion response padded bottom lines

Federal budget debt burden projections rely on rosy assumptions

How deferring the OAS just got a little more lucrative

Rising grey tide consumes growing share of federal budget

Weighing Ottawa’s fiscal anchor

To defend 2021 stimulus spending, Liberal government attacks Conservative austerity – in 2011

Federal budget 2021: For this generation of Liberals, government’s role is to do everything within its reach

Will the federal budget be a watershed moment in Canadian fiscal history?

Plenty of good reasons to expand child care, but it may not be needed as a short-term fix

Tax and Spend: The flaws of Ottawa’s pandemic sick-leave benefit

Why billions in federal sick-leave benefits have gone untapped

Ottawa’s idea of a carbon price plan is straightforward in theory but less so in practice

Carbon pricing holdouts eye holes in federal price floor

Canada Revenue Agency ramps up security in wake of hacks

How Ontario and Quebec set the stage for Ottawa’s first pandemic-era budget

When it comes to stimulus, more isn’t necessarily better