In a recent column in the Globe and Mail, Tom Flanagan bemoans the fact that the premium structure of Employment Insurance is not lined up with expected benefits. As a result, provinces to the west of the Ottawa River have long paid a good deal more into the program than they receive in benefits.

The solution: a constitutional amendment allowing Quebec to run its own EI program.

Quebec and Alberta interests certainly line up on this issue: one wrestles more control over federal powers, the other sees smaller government and lower taxes.

But let’s be clear, devolution of EI responsibilities—which constitutionally rests with the Federal Government—is about this sort of politics, not at all about the underlying economics of social insurance.

There are a host of legislative changes that the Federal government can introduce to make EI more efficient without even whispering the C-word.

Continue reading “Employment Insurance reform doesn’t need consitutional change” →