New government resources @OPL

Several new government publications are now available, illustrating the breadth of subject matter published by various levels of government. Most of these documents are available as electronic documents as well.

Buying your first home: three steps to successful mortgage shopping. Financial Consumer Agency of Canada, 2010.

Ontario's long-term energy plan: building our clean energy future. Ontario Ministry of Energy, 2010.

Age-friendly communication: facts, tips and ideas. Public Health Agency of Canada, 2010.

Euthanasia and assisted suicide in Canada. Parliamentary Information and Research Service, 2010.

Building the pipeline: increasing the participation of women in non-traditional occupations. Report of the Standing Committee on the Status of Women, December 2010.

Federal disability report: The Government of Canada's annual report on disability issues,Human Resources and Skills Development Canada, 2010.

The sustainability of Medicare. The Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions, 2010.

Health care transformation in Canada. Canadian Medical Association, 2010.

Ahmadinejad's Iran: A threat to peace, human rights and international law. Canada. Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development, 2010.

Measuring up: Canadian results of the OECD PISA study. The performance of Canada's youth in reading, mathematics and science. Statistics Canada and Council of Ministers of Education, Canada, 2010

Family Literacy Day

January 27th, 2011 is Family Literacy Day, an initiative of ABC Life Literacy Canada to encourage families to read and learn together all year long. Oakville Public Library has these government publications covering various aspects of literacy:

Me read? And how! Ontario teachers report on how to improve boys' literacy skills. Ontario Ministry of Education, 2009.
This guide is intended for educators at the primary and secondary levels who are developing and delivering literacy programs for boys, but it is also helpful for parents who might want to advocate for the use of these strategies in their schools.

Towards an understanding of gender differences in literacy achievement. Education Quality and Accountability Office of Ontario, 2010.
Research has shown that girls "have a significant and consistent advantage in literacy from an early age over boys," and this advantage is found internationally. Researchers used EQAO data collected in Ontario to study the gender gap.

Education indicators in Canada: an international perspective. Statistics Canada and Council of Ministers of Education, 2010.
This annual study compares educational systems in Canada with those of OECD countries.

Measuring up: Canadian results of the OECD PISA study. Statistics Canada and Council of Ministers of Education, 2010.
This study tracks the performance of Canada's youth in reading, mathematics and science.

Voter Turnout in the 2010 Municipal Election

Community Development Halton recently published four bulletins reporting on voter turnout in the 2010 municipal election for Oakville, Burlington, Milton and Halton Hills. Graphs of voter turnout over time show that Oakville is the only municipality in Halton breaking the downward trend. Oakville has seen a steady increase in voter turnout in the past four municipal elections. Voter turnout in Oakville was 40.0%, Burlington was 37.6%, Milton was 32.6%, and Halton Hills was 25.5%. Maps of each municipality show voter turnout rate by polling subdivision.

The four bulletins are issues of Community Lens, published in January 2011.

How did the 2008-2010 recession and recovery compare with previous cycles?

The question above is answered in a feature article in the January 2011 edition of Canadian Economic Observer, published by Statistics Canada.


The article states that the recent recession was less severe than those in 1981-82 and 1990-1992, by most conventional measures.

The early stages of the recent recession had significant impact however, because output and employment contracted at a faster rate than in any post-war recession.


Compared to other major industrialized countries, Canada's decline in output was less pronounced and the subsequent recovery was more complete and quicker.


The article also shows how Statistics Canada determines whether an economy is in recession.

A summary of the article may be found in the January 13, 2011 edition of The Daily, published by Statistics Canada.