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Queen's University
 

Symposium Agenda

Wednesday, September 14:

5:30 p.m.:
Registration
University Club at Queen's University
 168 Stuart St. (click here to view on the Queen's campus map)

6:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.:
Reception, Dinner and Keynote Address
University Club

  • 6:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.: Reception (cash bar)
  • 7:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.: Dinner
  • 8:00 p.m. - 8:45 p.m.: Keynote address: The Evolving Context for the Renewal of the Fiscal Arrangements; Speaker: David Dodge, Senior Advisor for Bennett Jones and Chancellor of Queen's University

Thursday, September 15:

Robert Sutherland Hall, Room 202, 138 Union Street (click here to view on the Queen's campus map)

8:45 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.:
Welcome
André Juneau, Director, Institute of Intergovernmental Relations, Queen's University

9:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.:
Session 1: The Purpose(s) of the Fiscal Arrangements in the Federation

  • What is the purpose of the fiscal arrangements in the Federation?
  • Is the role of transfers today different from the past?
  • What are the medium and longer term challenges that could test the existing arrangements? 

Chair: Al O'Brien, Fellow, Institute for Public Economics, University of Alberta
Panel: Robin Boadway, David Chadwick Smith, Chair in Economics, Queen's University; Alain Noel, Professor, Department of Political Science, University of Montreal

10:30 a.m. - 10:45 a.m.:
Refreshment and Health Break

10:45 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.:
 Session 2: How Best to Achieve These Purposes
  • Are federal transfers as we know them the most effective way to achieve these ends and address current and emerging issues?
  • What are the implications of growing disparities in fiscal capacity?
  • Do fiscal disparities matter in delivering comparable levels of services?
  • What are the consequences to fiscal federalism of varying costs to provide public services across provinces and territories? 
Chair: Janice MacKinnon, Professor, School of Public Health, University of Saskatchewan
Panel:  Tom Courchene, Jarislowsky-Deutsch Professor of Economics and Financial Policy, Queen's University;  Matthew Mendelsohn, Director, Mowat Centre for Policy Innovation, University of Toronto

12:15 p.m. - 1:15 p.m.:
Lunch

1:15 p.m. - 2:45 p.m.:
Session 3: Affordability of the Fiscal Arrangements and Sustainable Health and Social Programs in the Federation

  • Do the transfers in their current form raise affordability issues for the federal government?
  • Are the fiscal arrangements relevant to provincial/territorial program sustainability? Are they adequate to help sustain these programs?
  • Can fiscal arrangements be reformed to help manage growing health care costs?

Chair: George Anderson, President Emeritus and Senior Advisor, Forum of Federations
Panel:  Antonia Maioni, Associate Professor, Department of Political Science and Institute for Health and Social Policy, McGill University; Paul Hobson, Professor, Department of Economics, Acadia University

2:45 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.:
Refreshment and health break

3:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.:
Session 4: Moving Forward: Options for Reform

  • What should be the principles guiding any reforms?
  • Are there ways to support an improved understanding of the purpose and effectiveness of federal transfers to inform the public debate on their future?
  • Are there reforms needed to the institutional mechanisms supporting the fiscal arrangements that would improve governance and capacity?

Chair: France St. Hilaire, Vice-President of Research, Institute for Research on Public Policy
Panel: Keith Banting, Professor, Political Studies and Queen's Research Chair in Public Policy, Queen's University; André Lecours, Associate Professor, School of Political Studies, University of Ottawa

4:30 p.m.:
Wrap-up and Adjournment: André Juneau, Director, Institute of Intergovernmental Relations, Queen's University 

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