Don Drummond Quotations

So far the inflation side has performed well, but we know there are lags between capacity pressures and inflation, so we have to worry about that.

Ontario is not growing as fast as other areas. Is it appropriate to blame that on equalization? I would say no,

But the subject has not gripped the hearts and minds of most Canadians.

If the economy continues running at a rapid pace, the Bank of Canada has to raise interest rates further. Yields will go up as people expect the Bank of Canada may go more than just one more time.

He did a very good job as finance minister in Ontario. He's a very strong candidate for that position.

I think we have become insane with the attention we put on single indicators. The problem here is not Statistics Canada. The problem is how people use the survey.

We don't have anything in the safety net other than welfare, which is why there's nothing else to catch them on the way down, so they end up on the welfare rolls -- which is inappropriate.

What Canada needs is a shift in focus away from consumption and towards savings and investment,

We sometimes forget that the U.S. economy is a quarter of all world demand for oil, so if it slows down it should take some of the froth off the demand side.

There's no doubt we have a mild case of Dutch disease running in Canada.

It wouldn't be unfair to say that not only is the horse out of the barn but Finance has no idea where the horse has gone.

This is not just about tax cuts. It's about a cultural shift involving a major review of public policy and an increased commitment by the private sector to investment and innovation.

These views are unfortunate, since the reality is almost the exact opposite.

The Canadian dollar really turns on commodity prices.

Industrial policy too often amounts to taxing the winners to subsidize the losers.

Canada has recorded a remarkably bad productivity performance. Productivity has been tepid in terms of absolute growth rates and relative to the growth and levels recorded in other major economies. If this continues it will threaten the standard of living of Canadians.

If Finance was convinced it was a problem -- and it was being driven by inadequacy of the tax system -- it should have been dealt with couple of years ago,

I don't think they have the financial wherewithal to do both.

You could take this equalization burden away from Ontario and it's still going to have those dollar issues, and the commodity prices issues.

The key factor in that expectation is the pronounced slowdown in the U.S. economy,

The harsh reality is in many instances they're actually better off on welfare.

You will see further back-up in yields. The economy is robust, which will add fuel to expectations the Bank of Canada will keep raising interest rates.