'Secret' memo outlines tools the finance department and Bank of Canada could use in a recession

An internal memo addressed to federal Finance Minister Bill Morneau in August outlined a range of fiscal and monetary policies the Liberals and the Bank of Canada could employ in the event of "economic shocks" — a range that includes lowering interest rates even further and relying on Employment Insurance. The August memo, marked "secret," was released to CBC last month through the federal Access to Information Act. It's leading some economists to call on the government to prioritize some tools over others, and to consider at least one unprecedented economic strategy. The unredacted portions of the memo don't cite any specific recession warning signs — but the document does note that, since the 1970s, Canada has experienced four significant recessions, one per decade. Canada's last recession happened in 2008-09, triggered by the U.S. housing bubble.

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