Tom Axworthy, a political speechwriter, strategist and professor, is applauding the Macdonald-Laurier Institute’s work on improving the lives of northern Canadians as part of the Institute’s fifth anniversary celebrations.
“The Macdonald-Laurier Institute has ably promoted the long-overdue devolution of federal powers to the North both through its high standards of research and well-written reports”, says Axworthy.
MLI has emerged as a thought leader on northern governance issues during its first five years. In 2014 the Institute published a pair of reports, written by renowned authors Ken Coates and Greg Poelzer, exploring the issue in detail.
“The Next Northern Challenge” details the social and economic problems facing Canada’s “provincial norths”, the area in the northern parts of provinces such as Alberta and Quebec that are largely underserved by both the federal and local governments.
“An Unfinished Nation” argues that the solution is “devolution” – transferring government power, authority, and resources from the national government to sub-national governments.
Throughout 2015, MLI is marking five years of true north in Canadian public policy by celebrating its unique contributions to thought leadership in Canada.
This includes our work on fixing Canadian health care, unmasking the true impact of “social licence” claims over natural resource projects, explaining why balanced budgets matter and our work on Aboriginal prosperity.
Several other influential Canadians have also passed along their congratulations. This includes Canadian Council of Chief Executives’ President and CEO John Manley, Globe and Mail columnist Jeffrey Simpson, deputy TD Bank Chairman Frank McKenna and former Prime Minister Paul Martin.
For all of the details of MLI’s celebrations, check out our fifth anniversary page.
