| Abstract: | It is generally accepted that Governments, with a neo-conservative or more properly a Victorian neo-liberal bent will, through various means and mechanisms, try to dismantle aspects of the Welfare State. While these mechanisms usually take the form of privatization, reductions in expenditures, de-indexing and the like, a much more subtle process currently is underway in Canada. Two broad initiatives — Constitutional Change and Free Trade — of the Mulroney government seriously threaten the future of the Canadian Welfare State. The Welfare State is not the direct target in either of these initiatives but the implications, in the view of the authors, are profound. This article examines the question of constitutional reform and the consequences for Canadian social policy. |
