The news reports are filled with proposed solutions to the "imbalance" in the distribution of the thirteen Crowns' revenue vis a vis their respective legislative/political/social spending obligations.
May I suggest that what is needed is a comprehensive re-confederation of the operating statements and balance sheets of these jurisdictions, not just 'more money from Ottawa'.
Such a re-balancing and re-confederating could be simple and honourable to all if we follow the model from 1867. See BNA Act 1867, Part V111 Revenues; Debts; Assets; Taxation. http://laws.justice.gc.ca/en/const/c1867_e.html#revenues
Permit the General Government in Ottawa to assume all the provincial and territorial debts and free the sub-sovereignties of the tremendous burden of interest payments.
Use a similar-to-s.118, population-based formula to determine if any prov/terr is over or under benefited by this debt assumption and arrange a credit/tax-point arrangement to compensate that sub-sovereignty for it's (relatively) prudent management of their fisc.
All the provinces, freed from debt and governed with the current "balanced-budget" awareness in the voters, should be able to manage quite nicely.
The centralization of debt will cause economies in overall borrowing rates, thus reducing the portion of taxation revenue required for interest charges and simplify the creation of a plan for debt elimination.
The obvious "problem" will be the Queen's Dominion of Alberta.
Rather than penalize or reward those Canadians for the happy-accident of geology between their arbitrarily drawn boundary lines offer them (similar to the right reserved by Texas in joining the USA) the option to split their province into two - on an urban/rural basis.
This will give the urban areas of Alberta provincial status, representation, independence and power and similarly will give the rural portion's treasury independence from supporting the social demands of the great Alberta cities. In addition, this will free the rural portion's people from suffering under legislation that is designed for the urban portion, and vice versa.
The General Government in Ottawa will have a gigantic and truly worthy "national problem" to solve and fewer nagging money squabbles with the sub-sovereignties.
Perhaps the other provinces with "too-big-for-their-britches/s92,93 responsibilities" land masses will appeal for equal treatment and ask to have their urban and rural land masses re-jigged.
I suggest that we can Re-Confederate the land to match the way that people live - 80% in cities, 50% in three major centres - give those cities' populations the status, recognition and powers that they seek and simultaneously allow the 'spoils' of the Crown's assets to be stewarded, developed and shared by those who live and rely on those lands.
Fondest wishes in this beautiful time of year,
I Remain, your loyal subject/citizen
