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Task and Context:
1. You are a senior economist working for the Government of Ontario and have been asked to brief a provincial minister (you will need to choose the most appropriate minister to address) on the correlation between economic growth and trust in/role of institutions. In this case, the institutions in question are professional licensing bodies, which are regulated by provincial governments. Think about the role these bodies play in the economy, and their relationship with the public. Keep the following context in mind: There is, generally, broad support for the principles of cooperation and institutional trust. This is important for common socio-economic challenges (such as responses to pandemics, regional conflicts/wars, climate change and the like). However, this broad support in and for institutions, can be strained or can wane by the amount of political influence by which an independent institution falls under.
Your task is to develop your briefing note “Issue” after reading the article below. You should address the key points found in the article. You will need to research the issue further. You may wish to address tradeoffs, opportunity costs, and the principal-agent problem in context, if any. Keep in mind that the article is an opinion piece. Thus, you may agree or disagree with it. Remember that you are an unbiased senior economist applying principles of institutional economics.
2. Your briefing note is “For Information Only”; however, ensure that it has a well-developed “Key Considerations” section
3. Read the article pasted below or at https://torontosun.com/news/national/conservative-leader-pierre- poilievre-defends-jordan-petersons-right-to-free-speech
4. Important note: As per the lecture on briefing notes (BNs), know your audience and what is important to them. Familiarize yourself with the department’s mandate. Do not write your BN in the manner you would an essay for experts in your field. Do not write as a journalist/reporter. Do not use the vernacular. Do not summarize the article – that is not the purpose of the BNs. Research the issues to inform. your advice to the minister, and integrate your knowledge of economics (from this and all your other courses) into the BN. No references or citation in your BN, please! Do not plagiarize.
Article:
https://torontosun.com/news/national/conservative-leader-pierre-poilievre-defends-jordan- petersons-right-to-free-speech
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre defends Jordan Peterson's right to free speech
'I may not agree with what you say, but I will defend to my death your right to say it,' Poilievre says, quoting Voltaire
Author of the article: Jane Stevenson Published Jan 07, 2023
The reporting on populism these days seems to imply a dark, evil undertone. That's a ridiculous position when you look at our history.
Quoting 18th-century French writer Voltaire, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has defended clinical psychologist Jordan Peterson’s right to free speech.
In a video recorded outside while walking, and tweeted on his own account, Poilievre says while he doesn’t necessarily agree with all of Peterson’s views, he does support free speech in Canada.
“Now, it should go without saying that in a free country, a professional should not lose their jobs and licenses because they express a political opinion contrary to the licensing body that’s mandated by the government.” Poilievre said in the video.
“But of course, in saying this, my liberal critics in the media will, of course, say, ‘Well, Poilievre agrees with freedom of speech from someone like Dr. Peterson, therefore, he must endorse everything Dr. Peterson has ever said. ’ Well, of course not. I don’t endorse 100% of everything anyone has ever said.”
Poilievre’s comments come after the Ontario College of Psychologists told Peterson he must either undergo retraining for social media etiquette or lose his licence following a number of complaints from those who don’t like his online posts, including a retweet of a Poilievre post and a criticism of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
“I’m sure there is something he’s posted that I do object to,” Poilievre continued.
“But that is not the point because freedom of speech only matters when you disagree. I mean, if we all agreed, we wouldn’t need freedom of speech because no one has ever tried to censor someone for saying something that they agree with. It is only when there is a disagreement that it matters.”
“And that’s what distinguishes Canada, a free country, from dictatorships,” he added.
However, Poilievre did say that in Canada, because of “the cancel culture and the woke movement, we’ve seen at university campuses and in the media and now increasingly in big, powerful corporations, and most recently with a professional licensing body, we’re seeing the idea that someone can lose their job, their status, their ability to study because they express something that is contrary to the government line. Now, I don’t believe that is the Canada we want.”
Poilievre ends by pointing to Section 2-B of Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which guarantees freedom of expression.
“2-B or not 2-B That is the question,” Poilievre said. “And the answer is that, as Voltaire has been quoted as saying, ‘I may not agree with what you say, but I will defend to my death your right to say it.’”
