Frontier Centre

Nothing is more important than giving our children a good education, but getting rid of bad teachers can be very difficult.

A recent court case in California may change that in the United States.

A judge in Los Angeles has declared as unconstitutional, the sections of those laws that give teachers tenure within two years, protecting them from dismissal, and allowing lay-offs only on the basis of seniority.

Lawyers for a group of students argued successfully that the laws violate their rights to a quality education and equal opportunity to succeed, because they keep bad teachers in the classroom and push good ones out.

In both Canada and the U.S, firing a teacher requires years of documentation, costs hundreds of thousands of dollars, and is still not guaranteed to succeed.

In Alberta recently, a teachers’ association committee called for a two-year suspension for a teacher who terrorized students by kicking furniture and throwing objects at them.

The case shows that even grossly inappropriate behaviour does not always result in dismissal.

Good teachers should not be blamed for poor results due to factors beyond their control, but job security should not be guaranteed for incompetent or abusive teachers.

If governments don’t address the problem, the answer may lie with the courts, as was the case in California.

I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier.

For more on education policy, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Nothing is more important than giving our children a good education, but getting rid of bad teachers can be very difficult.

A recent court case in California may change that in the United States.

A judge in Los Angeles has declared as unconstitutional, the sections of those laws that give teachers tenure within two years, protecting them from dismissal, and allowing lay-offs only on the basis of seniority.

Lawyers for a group of students argued successfully that the laws violate their rights to a quality education and equal opportunity to succeed, because they keep bad teachers in the classroom and push good ones out.

In both Canada and the U.S, firing a teacher requires years of documentation, costs hundreds of thousands of dollars, and is still not guaranteed to succeed.

In Alberta recently, a teachers’ association committee called for a two-year suspension for a teacher who terrorized students by kicking furniture and throwing objects at them.

The case shows that even grossly inappropriate behaviour does not always result in dismissal.

Good teachers should not be blamed for poor results due to factors beyond their control, but job security should not be guaranteed for incompetent or abusive teachers.

If governments don’t address the problem, the answer may lie with the courts, as was the case in California.

I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier.

For more on education policy, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Political leaders around the world have now spent more than two decades setting targets for reducing emissions of carbon dioxide that no one has any realistic hope of achieving.

In the United Kingdom, emissions are being reduced at a rate of 1 percent per year.

To meet the country's target by 2022, that reduction will have to happen at a rate 4 to 5 times that.

Germany, which is building new coal-fired power plants, will also miss its 2020 emissions target.

Alternatives like solar and wind are simply not able to produce enough reasonably-priced, reliable energy that's necessary for an advanced, industrial economy.

Over the past 40 years, worldwide carbon dioxide emissions have taken a significant drop only once.

That was during the depth of the global financial crisis in 2009.

For the most part, when carbon dioxide emissions disappear, so do economic opportunities.

Manufacturing jobs in sectors like the auto industry need dependable, affordable power - not the unreliable, expensive electricity that's generated by wind turbines.

It's also important to remember the overall social cost in the debate over carbon dioxide emissions.

Coal mining supports thousands of families, as do oil wells.

Governments must pay more attention to the impact their environmental policies have on workers and their families.

I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier.

For more on energy and environmental policy, visit www.fcpp.org.

Political leaders around the world have now spent more than two decades setting targets for reducing emissions of carbon dioxide that no one has any realistic hope of achieving.

In the United Kingdom, emissions are being reduced at a rate of 1 percent per year.

To meet the country's target by 2022, that reduction will have to happen at a rate 4 to 5 times that.

Germany, which is building new coal-fired power plants, will also miss its 2020 emissions target.

Alternatives like solar and wind are simply not able to produce enough reasonably-priced, reliable energy that's necessary for an advanced, industrial economy.

Over the past 40 years, worldwide carbon dioxide emissions have taken a significant drop only once.

That was during the depth of the global financial crisis in 2009.

For the most part, when carbon dioxide emissions disappear, so do economic opportunities.

Manufacturing jobs in sectors like the auto industry need dependable, affordable power - not the unreliable, expensive electricity that's generated by wind turbines.

It's also important to remember the overall social cost in the debate over carbon dioxide emissions.

Coal mining supports thousands of families, as do oil wells.

Governments must pay more attention to the impact their environmental policies have on workers and their families.

I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier.

For more on energy and environmental policy, visit www.fcpp.org.

Manitoba and the three Maritime provinces who rely on equalization payments as a source of revenue are getting a lot less than they used to.

Equalization payments as a share of GDP have been declining significantly in all four provinces since 2009.

In Manitoba, this means losses in the hundreds of millions of dollars.

A decade ago, Quebec was the big winner in equalization, taking 37% of all such transfers, but Ontario was still a have-province in those days and they took nothing.

Quebec’s share is continuing to increase significantly, and Ontario has been on the receiving end since 2009.

This year, Quebec and Ontario together are receiving 67% of all equalization payments.

The decrease in equalization payments to Manitoba and the Maritime provinces does not result from lower federal spending on transfers, which are at historically high levels.

Canada’s two largest provinces have left less behind for the smaller provinces that rely on the program.

It's a challenging time for these 'have not' provinces, and it's not about to change anytime soon.

Each of them will have to address their own challenges through spending restraint and prudent fiscal management.

I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier.

To read our latest report on equalization, in partnership with the Atlantic Institute for Market Studies, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Manitoba and the three Maritime provinces who rely on equalization payments as a source of revenue are getting a lot less than they used to.

Equalization payments as a share of GDP have been declining significantly in all four provinces since 2009.

In Manitoba, this means losses in the hundreds of millions of dollars.

A decade ago, Quebec was the big winner in equalization, taking 37% of all such transfers, but Ontario was still a have-province in those days and they took nothing.

Quebec’s share is continuing to increase significantly, and Ontario has been on the receiving end since 2009.

This year, Quebec and Ontario together are receiving 67% of all equalization payments.

The decrease in equalization payments to Manitoba and the Maritime provinces does not result from lower federal spending on transfers, which are at historically high levels.

Canada’s two largest provinces have left less behind for the smaller provinces that rely on the program.

It's a challenging time for these 'have not' provinces, and it's not about to change anytime soon.

Each of them will have to address their own challenges through spending restraint and prudent fiscal management.

I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier.

To read our latest report on equalization, in partnership with the Atlantic Institute for Market Studies, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Residents of Canada's First Nations should begin to see noticeable improvements in the quality of their drinking water sooner rather than later.

While the condition of water and sewage treatment systems on many reserves is a serious concern, significant resources have recently been invested in First Nations water systems.

Since 2006, nearly $3 billion has been invested to support First Nations communities in managing their water and waste infrastructure, and some progress has already been made.

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Between 2011 and 2013, the number of First Nations with water systems that are considered high-risk with major deficiencies has been reduced from 27% to 19%.

The amount of water systems ranked as medium-risk level is now 43%, while the amount of systems that are low-risk is 38%.

It's a significant improvement, but more action must still be taken.

Research suggests that water quality problems affect a large number of rural communities in Canada, and the problems are by no means limited to First Nations.

The most common culprits are the quality of groundwater and sources of contamination.

If Aboriginal Affairs sticks to its current investment strategy, hopefully substandard water and waste infrastructure on First Nations may soon be a thing of the past.

I'm Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier.

For more on Aboriginal policy, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Residents of Canada's First Nations should begin to see noticeable improvements in the quality of their drinking water sooner rather than later.

While the condition of water and sewage treatment systems on many reserves is a serious concern, significant resources have recently been invested in First Nations water systems.

Since 2006, nearly $3 billion has been invested to support First Nations communities in managing their water and waste infrastructure, and some progress has already been made.

.

Between 2011 and 2013, the number of First Nations with water systems that are considered high-risk with major deficiencies has been reduced from 27% to 19%.

The amount of water systems ranked as medium-risk level is now 43%, while the amount of systems that are low-risk is 38%.

It's a significant improvement, but more action must still be taken.

Research suggests that water quality problems affect a large number of rural communities in Canada, and the problems are by no means limited to First Nations.

The most common culprits are the quality of groundwater and sources of contamination.

If Aboriginal Affairs sticks to its current investment strategy, hopefully substandard water and waste infrastructure on First Nations may soon be a thing of the past.

I'm Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier.

For more on Aboriginal policy, visit our website www.fcpp.org.

Winnipeg has a new mayor for the first time in a decade, and Brian Bowman wants to cut the salaries of councillors.

There have also been moves to cut support staff for councillors, but more thought is needed on this one.

Councillors in any municipality need to respond effectively to a wide range of queries from taxpayers, communicate the actions of council to the public, and be able to make proper informed decisions on key issues.

To do all this, they need capable research staff to help study the issues.

A proposal to give a $10,000 incentive to encourage Winnipeggers to buy downtown condominiums had to be reconsidered, and it appears there was not enough research behind the idea.

Some councillors admitted to not fully understanding the proposal before they voted on it, and Council had to quietly reverse the decision.

Increasing the research capability would help to build expertise on urban issues.

Across Canada, there are relatively few people whose full-time job is to research policies affecting municipalities.

Councillors should be free to spend more of their time taking care of their constituents rather than try to run entire offices on their own.

I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier.

For more on issues facing local government, visit www.fcpp.org.

Winnipeg has a new mayor for the first time in a decade, and Brian Bowman wants to cut the salaries of councillors.

There have also been moves to cut support staff for councillors, but more thought is needed on this one.

Councillors in any municipality need to respond effectively to a wide range of queries from taxpayers, communicate the actions of council to the public, and be able to make proper informed decisions on key issues.

To do all this, they need capable research staff to help study the issues.

A proposal to give a $10,000 incentive to encourage Winnipeggers to buy downtown condominiums had to be reconsidered, and it appears there was not enough research behind the idea.

Some councillors admitted to not fully understanding the proposal before they voted on it, and Council had to quietly reverse the decision.

Increasing the research capability would help to build expertise on urban issues.

Across Canada, there are relatively few people whose full-time job is to research policies affecting municipalities.

Councillors should be free to spend more of their time taking care of their constituents rather than try to run entire offices on their own.

I’m Roger Currie. Join us again next week for more thoughts on the Frontier.

For more on issues facing local government, visit www.fcpp.org.