This article originally appeared in the Financial Post. Below is an excerpt from the article.
By Jack Mintz, March 19, 2026
For finance ministers these days, affordability trumps productivity. Tuesday’s Australian budget is a perfect example Canadians need to pay attention to. Australia has a resource-based economy like ours and our two countries tend to learn from each other in framing economic and tax policies.
Unlike the U.S., with its booming business investment climate, Canada, the EU and the U.K. face a dearth of non-residential investment. To boost productivity, we should cut the taxes that most discourage investment, work and risk-taking. Corporate taxes, capital gains taxes and high personal tax rates, including those arising from income-testing benefits, affect productivity most and should top the tax policy agenda.
Affordability focuses on quite a different tax agenda: reducing taxes on the most vulnerable. Many voters facing tight budgets are demanding their governments help them deal with rising prices, especially for necessities like food, gasoline and housing.
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Jack Mintz is the President’s Fellow at the University of Calgary’s school of public policy and a distinguished fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute.
