The Fraser Institute is a libertarian Canadian public policy think tank registered as a charity. It is headquartered in Vancouver, with additional offices in Calgary, Toronto, and Montreal. It has links to think tanks worldwide through the Economic Freedom Network and is a member of the free-market Atlas Network.
In 2020, the University of Pennsylvania's Center for Think Tanks' Global Go To Think Tank Index Report ranked Fraser 14th on its "Top Think Tanks Worldwide" listing, and 1st on its list of "Top Think Tanks in Mexico and Canada".
History The Fraser Institute was founded in 1974 by Michael Walker, an economist from the University of Western Ontario, and businessman T. Patrick Boyle, then a vice-president of MacMillan Bloedel. The institute is named after the Fraser River. According to CBC News, some people allege that Michael Walker helped set up the institute after he received financial backing from forestry giant MacMillan Bloedel, largely to counter British Columbia's NDP government, then led by premier Dave Barrett. Antony Fisher, who had founded the Institute of Economic Affairs in the United Kingdom, was a co-founder.
The institute obtained charitable status in Canada on October 22, 1974, and in the United States in 1978. Fraser Institute It is a member of the Atlas Network, which Fisher founded in 1981. Fisher was appointed acting director in 1975, until Walker became executive director in 1977.
In late 1997, the institute set up a research program emulating the UK's Social Affairs Unit, called the Social Affairs Centre. Its founding director was Patrick Basham. The program's funding came from Rothmans International and Philip Morris.Fraser Institute letter of 28 January 2000 to British American Tobacco chairman Martin Broughton, Letter to Martin Broughton regarding research program in emulation of the social affairs unit , disclosed via Legacy Tobacco Documents Library. When Rothmans was bought by British American Tobacco (BAT) in 1999, its funding ended, and in 2000 the institute wrote to BAT asking for $50,000 per year, to be split between the Social Affairs Centre and the Centre for Risk and Regulation. The letter highlighted the institute's 1999 publication Passive Smoke: The EPA's Betrayal of Science and Policy,John Luik and Gio Batta Gori (1999), Passive Smoke: The EPA's Betrayal of Science and Policy , Vancouver: Fraser Institute "which highlighted the absence of any scientific evidence for linking cancer with second-hand smoke [and] received widespread media coverage both in Canada and the United States". At this time the CEO of BAT's Canadian subsidiary, Imasco, was also on the Fraser Institute's board of trustees.
In 1999, the Fraser Institute was criticized by health professionals and scientists for sponsoring two conferences on the tobacco industry entitled Junk Science, Junk Policy? Managing Risk and Regulation and Should Government Butt Out? The Pros and Cons of Tobacco Regulation. Critics charged the institute was associating itself with the tobacco industry's many attempts to discredit authentic scientific work.
The Fraser Institute accepted donations worth $100,000 from Philip Morris for "publishing research studies" in 2011–2012. Research produced by the Institute has previously argued that "tobacco taxation causes smuggling", a common claim by corporations in the industry that has been disputed by public health officials and critics as exaggerated and erroneous.
According to the January 2020 Global Go To Think Tank Index Report (Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program, University of Pennsylvania), Fraser is number 14 (of 8,200) in the "Top Think Tanks Worldwide" and number 1 in the "Top Think Tanks in Mexico and Canada".
Staff In April 2012, economist Niels Veldhuis was appointed president. The institute is governed by a board of trustees. Current members of the board include Peter Brown (chairman), Mark Mitchell (vice-chairman), and Edward Belzberg (vice-chairman).Board of Directors Fraser Institute
Previous Directors at the Fraser Institute include: Antony Fisher, founder of the Atlas Network and IEA Michael Walker, co-founder of Fraser Institute Frank Rochon, Vice Chairman/NMP of Deloitte Canada Salem Ben Nasser Al-Ismaily, Advisor of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Oman Joni Avram, former Communications Director of the Reform Party of Canada Ryan Beedie, President of the Beedie Group (largest private industrial land owner, developer and property manager in Western Canada) Edward S. Belzberg, Jayberg Enterprises Ltd. Brad Bennett, former Chief Advisor to Christy Clark, former chair of BC Hydro Joseph C. Canavan, CEO of Assante Wealth Management Alex A. Chaufen, former President of Atlas Network Derwood Chase Jr., founder of Chase Investment Counsel Corporation, trustee of Reason Foundation and Mont Pelerin Society Tracie Crook, COO of McCarthy Tétrault law firm and former CEO of ResMor Trust Company James W. Davidson, CEO/co-founder of FirstEnergy Capital Corp. (with Rick Grafton, W. Brett Wilson, and N. Murray Edwards.
Board of Directors The Fraser Institute's Board of Directors is mainly composed of prominent executives from corporations, financial institutions, investment capital firms, and REITs in Canada. As of August 2023, the Board was composed of: Name Role Background Mark Scott Chair Vice-President of Abinger Property Management/Nu-West, Manager at Morguard Corporation, Board Trustee at Wardley (HSBC) China Investment Trust, Director of Asian Capital Partners, Managing Director for Scotiabank, Global Banking & Markets, President of Douglas & McIntyre Publishers, Board Director of China Education Resources, Executive Vice-President of Genesis Land Development Corporation, Managing Partner of Balfour Pacific Capital. Peter M. Brown Past Chair Founder of Canaccord Genuity, Manager of Corporate Finance at Greenshields (Canada's oldest private brokerage), Past Chair of Vancouver Police Foundation. Rod Senft Vice-Chair, British Columbia Lawyer at Thompson Dorfman Sweatman, Secretary/General Counsel for Cargill, Partner at Davis & Company LLP (now absorbed by DLA Piper), Managing Director of Tricor Pacific Capital Inc., Director of Pender West Capital Partners Inc., Managing Director of Tricor Pacific Founders Capital Inc., Chairman/CEO of Hines Nurseries (filed for bankruptcy in 2008) and SunGro Horticulture, Founder of Parallel49 Equity. Andrew Judson Vice-Chair, Alberta Managing Director of Camcor Partners Inc., Director of WinSport Inc. Foundation Committee, Director/Senior Advisor at Daytona Power Corporation, Managing Director of Institutional Sales at FirstEnergy Capital Inc., Director of Pieridae Energy Limited, Lead Director of Condor Energies Inc. Shaun Francis Vice-Chair, Ontario CEO of Medcan, Senior Vice-President of The Broadlane Group, Inc., Morgan Stanley in New York & Toronto, Founder of True Patriot Love Foundation, Board Member of Toronto Pearson International Airport, Board Member of Upper Canada College, Chair of Young Presidents' Organization, Ontario Chapter. Jonathan Wener Vice-Chair, Quebec Founder/CEO of Canderel, Chancellor of Concordia University, Board Member of Kehilla Group Montreal, Trustee/Board Member of Jewish General Hospital Foundation, Board Member of Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, Honorary Council of Montreal Symphony Orchestra, Board Member of Laurentian Bank of Canada, Co-Chair of Federation CJA Campaign, Executive Committee of Israel Bonds/Development Corporation for Israel.
Associated people The institute has attracted some well-known individuals to its ranks, including politicians such as former Reform Party of Canada leader Preston Manning, former Progressive Conservative Ontario premier Mike Harris, and former Progressive Conservative Alberta premier Ralph Klein. From 1979 to 1991, the institute's senior economist was Walter Block.Walter Block curriculum vitae on Walterblock.com, p. 2.
Ideology The Fraser Institute describes itself as "an independent, non-partisan research and educational organization",Who We Are Fraser Institute and envisions "a free and prosperous world where individuals benefit from greater choice, competitive markets, and personal responsibility".Mission Fraser Institute The Fraser Institute's stated mission is "to measure, study, and communicate the impact of competitive markets and government intervention on the welfare of individuals."
Forbes has referred to the think tank as libertarian. The New York Times has described the institute as libertarian.With Interest: Turning the tables on reform The New York Times Langley Times classified it as right-of-centre libertarian.
Activities
Research and publications
The institute self-publishes a variety of reports: Economic Freedom Index: The institute's annual Economic Freedom of the World index ranks the countries of the world according to their degrees of economic freedom. The institute has also published regional and sub-national reports ranking the economic freedom of North America, Latin America, the Arab World, and the Francophonie. These reports are distributed worldwide through the Economic Freedom Network, a global network of 80 think-tanks. Human Freedom Index: Along with the Cato Institute and the Liberales Institut at the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom, the Fraser Institute publishes annual Human Freedom Index, which presents the state of human freedom in the world based on a broad measure of 76 distinct indicators that encompasses personal, civil, and economic freedom. The index presents a broad measure of human freedom, understood as the absence of coercive constraint. The index covers the following areas: Rule of Law, Security and Safety, Movement, Religion, Association, Assembly, and Civil Society, Expression, Relationships, Size of Government, Legal System and Property Rights, Access to Sound Money, Freedom to Trade Internationally, and Regulation of Credit, Labor, and Business. The Human Freedom Index was created in 2015, covering 152 countries for years 2008, 2010, 2011 and 2012. In January 2016 data for 2013 was added, covering 157 countries. Waiting Your Turn: Wait Times for Health Care in Canada is the institute's annual report on hospital waiting times in Canada, based on a nationwide survey of physicians and health care practitioners. The twentieth annual survey, released December 2010, found that the total waiting time between referral from a general practitioner and delivery of elective treatment by a specialist, averaged across 12 specialties and 10 provinces surveyed, had risen from 16.1 weeks in 2009 to 18.2 weeks in 2010. Survey of Mining Companies: Published annually, the global Survey of Mining Companies ranks the investment climates of mining jurisdictions around the world, based on the opinions of mining industry executives and managers. Global Petroleum Survey: An annual survey of petroleum executives regarding barriers to investment in oil- and gas-producing regions around the world. Canadian Provincial Investment Climate: A series of reports measuring the extent to which Canadian provinces embrace public policies that contribute to, and sustain, positive investment climates. Firearms reports. The Fraser Institute issued a number of articles and statements opposing Canadian gun control laws, including firearms registry. School Report Cards: Every year, the institute publishes a series of School Report Cards ranking the academic performance of schools in British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario, Quebec, and Washington state based on the publicly available results of standardized testing mandated and administered by the provinces.School Report Cards Fraser Institute The website www.compareschoolrankings.org allows users to compare up to five schools at once, based on a variety of performance indicators.Compare School Rankings Fraser Institute