Most of us learn very early on in life that if something sounds too good to be true, well then, it probably is. This is exactly what came to mind when I started hearing talk late last year that the federal government was once again considering boosting CPP and QPP...

It's never fun to think about everything that could go wrong, but preparing for the worst is a sign of maturity. Fires and floods (and much worse) are a part of life, and we shrug them off at our peril.

A few days ago in the Philippines, I was...

If your only exposure to federal politics was the cut-and-thrust of Question Period, or the attack ads we see during election campaigns, you might come to the conclusion that Canadian democracy is entirely partisan and borderline dysfunctional. And while our political environment can leave much to be desired, it doesn't...

My job allows me to speak to hundreds of business owners each year and I regularly take these opportunities to ask them about their experiences in getting starting. I am always impressed to hear how they came up with the ideas for their businesses and how they managed the early...

Bad public policy ideas are like Jason Voorhees in those old Friday the 13thmovies: no matter how many times you think you've killed them, they keep coming back to cause trouble.

As the federal and provincial finance ministers get ready to discuss a number of issues, the country faces...

Back in June, I wrote a newspaper column that defended Finance Minister Jim Flaherty's comment that there are no "bad jobs" out there. Suffice it to say, my column received a decidedly mixed review from readers!

Finding yourself out of work can be a scary and demoralizing experience,...

I can only laugh and shake my head when the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) is occasionally accused of being a "right-wing" organization.

For starters, CFIB has always been strictly non-partisan, and we deal with governments of all political stripes in order to represent the interests of small...

In my last column, I made the case for Pooled Registered Pension Plans (PRPPs). It's important that Canadians save money for retirement, but unsustainable public sector pension plans could put all of us in the poorhouse if politicians don't get serious about fixing them. Let me put the...

"You've got to be kidding me."

Those were the words I mumbled to myself as I read NDP MP Irene Mathyssen's recent Huffington Post article, "Why PRPPs Will Not Ensure Pension Security for Canadians."

For those of you who are unaware of the acronym, PRPP stands for...

Imagine if your bank demanded three per cent of every paycheque your employer deposited into your account -- just for the privilege of using the bank's services. The chances are good that you and a lot of other Canadians would get pretty steamed about it. You might even withdraw all...