Gambling and Saving
We suggest:
- Habits of thrift and savings contribute to household financial security, individual well-being, and the health of the economy as a whole.
- Government policy should encourage these patterns of financial behaviour.
Supporting Research

Start Here
Brian Dijkema,
Rhys McKendry
February 22, 2016
Our current payday loan market is failing consumers and society and government regulations alone cannot solve the current situation. Our new report, Banking on the Margins, aims at reforming Canada's payday loan market. In this report, we call for joint efforts between government, banks, credit unions and charities to provide customers with lower rate loans as an alternative to payday loans.

May 28, 2021
Building financial security for all Canadians, but especially for the most vulnerable, is widely recognized as an important policy priority. Governments have a unique opportunity to kick gambling addiction to work for, not against, low-income households.

Johanna Lewis,
Brian Dijkema
May 28, 2021
Four Options to Help the Government Turn Its Addiction to Gambling Revenue into Assets for the Poor
Explorations

Peter Stockland,
Brian Dijkema
April 11, 2018
This week, Cardus Work and Economics gave municipalities in Ontario data-driven advice about handling new powers over the debt trap that is the payday loan industry. Convivium’s Peter Stockland spoke with program director Brian Dijkema about helping cities help the working poor.

Peter Stockland
February 28, 2017
Publisher Peter Stockland sits down with Work and Economics Program Director Brian Dijkema to talk about Pay Day Loans. Hear what Dijkema told Convivium before his testimony to the Queen’s Park Standing Committee on Social Policy.
Media Coverage


August 10, 2022
"The problem is that the government is actually addicted to the (gambling) revenue," Brian Dijkema, Vice President of External Affairs at Cardus, tells CKNW's Jas Johal. Listen in as Brian picks up on the latest Statistics Canada data on problem gambling to argue for total reform in B.C.


July 8, 2022
"According to Cardus, Manitoba's government and other provincial governments should work to kick their addictions to gambling money by permanently ensuring VLT revenues never make their way into the government's general revenues," writes Prof. Royce Koop in this op-ed article. (Paywall)
Photo by Christopher Ryan on Unsplash


June 21, 2022
"With public balance sheets upended by two years of intermittent lockdowns, the provincial government has a valuable opportunity for reform. It’s time to restructure Ontario’s gambling system to empower those on the economic margins, rather than preying on them," write Brian Dijkema, Cardus Vice-President of External Affairs, and Johanna Lewis, a former Cardus researcher.
Photo by Josh Appel on Unsplash
Gambling and Saving
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What else are we working toward?
Strong Family Projects
Human Dignity Projects
Religious Freedom Projects
Healthy Community Projects
Formative Education Projects
Recent Projects
Strong Family Projects
Human Dignity Projects
Religious Freedom Projects
Healthy Community Projects
Formative Education Projects
Recent Projects
Strong Family Projects
Human Dignity Projects
Religious Freedom Projects
Healthy Community Projects
Formative Education Projects
Recent Projects
Strong Family Projects
Human Dignity Projects
Religious Freedom Projects
Healthy Community Projects
Formative Education Projects
Recent Projects
Strong Family Projects
Human Dignity Projects
Religious Freedom Projects
Healthy Community Projects
Formative Education Projects
Recent Projects
Strong Family Projects
Human Dignity Projects
Religious Freedom Projects
Healthy Community Projects
Formative Education Projects
Recent Projects