How Ottawa Spends: The Politics of Fragmentation, 1991-92

John Stanley is a policy advisor with the Ontario Government.

This volume is the latest in a series that began in 1983. Seven of the
12 contributors are at Carleton, so the work has the look of an in-house
view of federal politics. The title of the series raises the expectation
that the economics of federal decision-making will be explored. However,
few of the essays rise to the challenge; most are political analyses
with economic implications tacked on.

Abele’s introduction provides a context for the essays that follow:
in a tight fiscal situation during an economic downturn of its own
ideological making, the Government of Canada was able to provide only
symbols and rhetoric to guide its policies during fiscal year 1991–92.
The chapter on Native–State relations in the 1990s is a detailed
narrative with little original analysis and almost no mention of fiscal
or economic issues. The chapter on Quebec gives even less attention to
the fiscal context. The chapter on the West offers an interesting entry
point for discussion—environmentalism—but fails to satisfactorily
address this complex issue. In Atlantic Canada, where federal fiscal
policies are of enormous importance, the analysis cannot ignore
economics but it never rises above the commonplace. The discussion of
free trade is solid but unfortunately has already been made irrelevant
by NAFTA.

The chapter on interest groups, by Susan Philips, is perhaps the most
interesting. The analysis is clearly based in political economy, such as
multicultural organizations, while avoiding long-term fiscal
involvement. Equally interesting is Daiva Stasiulis’s essay on race
and visible minorities. Despite the conservative label of the current
federal government, this Carleton professor notes that Ottawa has been
consistent in its attempt to counter racism.

The essay on abortion is hampered by the fact that fiscal aspects of
abortion are of minor importance to Ottawa. In contrast, Michael
Prince’s essay on pension “reform” is one of the book’s most
trenchant examinations of federal fiscal policies; in effect, pension
“reform” means finding ways to spend less federal funds on elderly
Canadians.

This volume cannot be said to fulfil the promise of the series title.
The essays touch on numerous key topics in Canadian politics, but only
seldom are spending issues at the heart of any chapter. The connection
between federal fiscal policies and Canada’s fragmentation is also
seldom emphasized. A clearer focus for future volumes is needed if the
series is to rise to its potential.