Macdonald-Laurier Institute
Encyclopedia
The Macdonald-Laurier Institute (MLI) is a Canadian public policy think tank located in Ottawa
. The Managing Director of MLI is Brian Lee Crowley
who was also the founding President of the Atlantic Institute for Market Studies (AIMS), a think tank based in Atlantic Canada
.
Founded in 2010, the group is named after two of Canada’s earliest and most recognizable political leaders. Sir John A. Macdonald was Canada’s first Prime Minister and Sir Wilfrid Laurier was the country’s first French-Canadian Prime Minister. MLI is politically independent and a Canada Revenue Agency-registered charity for educational purposes. Its official mandate is “…to make poor quality public policy unacceptable in Ottawa”.
The Institute provides detailed information with respect to its research independence, which includes both internal controls (through a Board of Directors and a Research Advisory Board) and external peer review of research efforts. The Institute derives its financial support from individual, corporate and private foundation funding sources. Its stated focus is on issues relating to the federal government and the broader national interest.
The organisation also publishes irregular shorter papers that they refer to as Commentaries. These cover diverse topics and to date include: AbitibiBowater, Democracy and the Public Interest, Prison Radicalization, Keeping the US-Canada Border Open, Canadian Manufacturing, Corporate Income Taxes, Honouring Sacrifice, MLI Report Card on the Government Response to Human Smuggling, The Western Alliance: A Moral Superpower or Nothing, The International Court of Justice advisory Opinion on Kosovo’s Declaration of Independence: What does it mean for Quebec’s Sovereigntist Movement?, Seniors, Population Ageing and the Future of Canada, Why is Good Policy Toxic Politics?, Why Aiding Pakistan Matters, and The ‘Sun Sea’ Tamil Mass Refugee Claim: An Opportunity for Needed Reforms.
MLI also published its first book in May of 2010. Titled The Canadian Century: Moving out of America’s Shadow, the book has met with considerable critical acclaim. It appeared on the best-seller lists of the Montreal Gazette and one of the year’s best political books by The Hill Times. The Globe and Mail reviewer, Neil Reynolds, called it a “visionary work”.
and the righ-wing Galen Institute
http://www.galen.org/content/scholars.html and intellectual debts to free market economists such as Friedrich Hayek
and Ludwig von Mises
http://www.macdonaldlaurier.ca/william-watson-on-healthcare-from-the-ground-up mark clearly its neoliberal position.
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
. The Managing Director of MLI is Brian Lee Crowley
Brian Lee Crowley
Brian Lee Crowley, is Managing Director of the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, a national public policy think tank based in Ottawa...
who was also the founding President of the Atlantic Institute for Market Studies (AIMS), a think tank based in Atlantic Canada
Atlantic Canada
Atlantic Canada is the region of Canada comprising the four provinces located on the Atlantic coast, excluding Quebec: the three Maritime provinces – New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Nova Scotia – and Newfoundland and Labrador...
.
Founded in 2010, the group is named after two of Canada’s earliest and most recognizable political leaders. Sir John A. Macdonald was Canada’s first Prime Minister and Sir Wilfrid Laurier was the country’s first French-Canadian Prime Minister. MLI is politically independent and a Canada Revenue Agency-registered charity for educational purposes. Its official mandate is “…to make poor quality public policy unacceptable in Ottawa”.
The Institute provides detailed information with respect to its research independence, which includes both internal controls (through a Board of Directors and a Research Advisory Board) and external peer review of research efforts. The Institute derives its financial support from individual, corporate and private foundation funding sources. Its stated focus is on issues relating to the federal government and the broader national interest.
Publishing
Since opening its doors in March of 2010, MLI has produced major papers dealing with crime statistics, Why Canadian crime statistics don’t add up: Not the whole truth, by Scott Newark; aboriginal post-secondary education, Free to Learn by Calvin Helin and Dave Snow; inter-provincial trade, Citizen of One, Citizen of the Whole by Robert Knox, Brian Lee Crowley and John Robson and; prison radicalization, From Rehabilitation to Recruitment by Dr. Alex Wilner. In addition, study series have been initiated in the areas of Canada’s Founding Ideas with the publication of Confederation and Individual Liberty by Dr. Janet Azjenstat, and; the creation of A National Security Strategy for Canadians with To Stand On Guard by Paul Chapin. The Institute also published a Policy Paper reviewing Mortgage Insurance in Canada by Professor Jane Londerville.The organisation also publishes irregular shorter papers that they refer to as Commentaries. These cover diverse topics and to date include: AbitibiBowater, Democracy and the Public Interest, Prison Radicalization, Keeping the US-Canada Border Open, Canadian Manufacturing, Corporate Income Taxes, Honouring Sacrifice, MLI Report Card on the Government Response to Human Smuggling, The Western Alliance: A Moral Superpower or Nothing, The International Court of Justice advisory Opinion on Kosovo’s Declaration of Independence: What does it mean for Quebec’s Sovereigntist Movement?, Seniors, Population Ageing and the Future of Canada, Why is Good Policy Toxic Politics?, Why Aiding Pakistan Matters, and The ‘Sun Sea’ Tamil Mass Refugee Claim: An Opportunity for Needed Reforms.
MLI also published its first book in May of 2010. Titled The Canadian Century: Moving out of America’s Shadow, the book has met with considerable critical acclaim. It appeared on the best-seller lists of the Montreal Gazette and one of the year’s best political books by The Hill Times. The Globe and Mail reviewer, Neil Reynolds, called it a “visionary work”.
Impact
The Macdonald-Laurier Institute has generated substantial media coverage of its publications, public policy ideas and opinions during its time in operation. Contributors and staff have appeared in national and regional news media comment on a variety of national issues. The Institute maintains a list of media information on its web site. Of note are Op-Eds that have appeared in Canada’s national newspapers, the Globe and Mail and National Post, as well as in the Vancouver Sun, Calgary Herald, Windsor Star, Moncton Times-Transcript, Halifax Chronicle-Herald and more. The Institute has also been highlighted in Foreign Policy magazine, the Wall Street Journal and The Economist in its first year.Board of Directors
- Rob Wildeboer, Chair
- Brian Lee Crowley, Managing Director
- Lincoln Caylor, Secretary
- Les Kom, Treasurer
- John Beck, Director
- Erin Chutter, Director
- Navjeet (Bob) Dhillon, Director
- J. Wayne Gudbranson, Director
- Martin MacKinnon, Director
- Peter John Nicholson, Director
- Rick Peterson, Director
- Jacquelyn Thayer Scott, Director
- Keith Gillam, Director
- Stanley Hartt, Director
Advisory Council
- Purdy Crawford
- Jim Dinning
- Don Drummond
- Robert Fulford
- Calvin Helin
- Hon. Jim Peterson
- Maurice B. Tobin
- Brian Flemming
Research Advisory Board
- Janet Ajzenstat
- Brian Ferguson
- Jack Granatstein
- Patrick James
- Rainer Knopff
- Larry Martin
- Christopher Sands
- William Watson
Staff
- Brian Lee Crowley, Managing Director
- Patricia Bouchard, Administrative assistant
- Robin Bourke, Office manager
- Kim Chadsey, Director of Operations
MLI Fellows
- Jason Clemens, Fellow
- Alex Wilner, Fellow
Books
- The Canadian Century: Moving Out of America's Shadow, by Brian Lee Crowley, Jason Clemens and Neils Veldhuis, May 2010.
- Fearful Symmetry: The Fall and Rise of Canada’s Founding Values, by Brian Lee Crowley.
- The Economic Dependency Trap: Breaking Free To Self-Reliance, by MLI Advisory Council member Calvin Helin.
True North Study Papers
- Why Canadian crime statistics don't add up: Not the whole truth, by Scott Newark, February 9, 2011.
- From Rehabilitation to Recruitment, by Alex Wilner, October 18, 2010.
- Citizen of One, Citizen of the Whole: How Ottawa can strengthen our nation by eliminating provincial trade barriers with a charter of economic rights, by Brian Lee Crowley, Robert Knox and John Robson, June 21, 2010.
- Free to Learn: Giving Aboriginal Youth Control over Their Post-Secondary Education, by Calvin Helin and Dave Snow, March 15, 2010.
National Security Strategy
- To Stand On Guard, by Paul H. Chapin, November 29, 2010.
Pharmaceutical Series
- Pills, Patents & Profits, by Brian Ferguson, March 25, 2011.
Canada's Founding Ideas
- Confederation and Individual Liberty, by Janet Ajzenstat, November 10, 2010.
Policy Briefings
- Mortgage Insurance in Canada, by Jane Londerville, November 18, 2010.
Controversy
The Institute professes to be strictly non-partisan and points to its name as a prime indicator of this intent. However, as a think tank directed by high-profile businesspeople with an emphasis on lowering business taxes, reducing government spendinghttp://www.macdonaldlaurier.ca/canadian-manufacturing-clear-the-track-and-we-can-beat-the-world, privatizing the healthcare system http://www.macdonaldlaurier.ca/william-watson-on-healthcare-from-the-ground-up and "working toward a common security perimeter with the United States"http://www.macdonaldlaurier.ca/tostandonguard the institute's sympathies are on the right wing of the political spectrum. Moreover, links between Brian Lee CrowleyBrian Lee Crowley
Brian Lee Crowley, is Managing Director of the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, a national public policy think tank based in Ottawa...
and the righ-wing Galen Institute
Galen Institute
The Galen Institute is a non-profit public policy research organization based in Alexandria, Virginia. Founded in 1995 by Grace-Marie Turner, the Galen Institute's stated mission is "advancing free-market ideas in health policy, promoting a more informed public debate over ideas that support...
http://www.galen.org/content/scholars.html and intellectual debts to free market economists such as Friedrich Hayek
Friedrich Hayek
Friedrich August Hayek CH , born in Austria-Hungary as Friedrich August von Hayek, was an economist and philosopher best known for his defense of classical liberalism and free-market capitalism against socialist and collectivist thought...
and Ludwig von Mises
Ludwig von Mises
Ludwig Heinrich Edler von Mises was an Austrian economist, philosopher, and classical liberal who had a significant influence on the modern Libertarian movement and the "Austrian School" of economic thought.-Biography:-Early life:...
http://www.macdonaldlaurier.ca/william-watson-on-healthcare-from-the-ground-up mark clearly its neoliberal position.