Fred McMahon

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Resident Fellow, Dr. Michael A. Walker Chair in Economic Freedom

Fred McMahon is a Fraser Institute Resident Fellow and holder of the Dr. Michael A. Walker Chair in Economic Freedom. He has an M.A. in Economics from McGill University. Mr. McMahon manages the Economic Freedom of the World Project and coordinates the Economic Freedom Network, an international alliance of over 100 think tank partners in about 100 nations and territories. His research focuses on global issues such as development, trade, governance and economic structure. Mr. McMahon is the author of numerous research articles and several books including, Looking the Gift Horse in the Mouth: The Impact of Federal Transfers on Atlantic Canada, which won the Sir Antony Fisher International Memorial Award for advancing public policy debate, Road to Growth: How Lagging Economies Become Prosperous, and Retreat from Growth: Atlantic Canada and the Negative Sum Economy.

He has written for numerous publications including the European Journal of Political Economy, the SAIS Journal (School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University), the Wall Street Journal, Policy Options, National Post, Time (Canada), Globe and Mail, Ottawa Citizen, and most other major Canadian newspapers. Research articles he has recently authored or co-authored include: Economic Freedom of North America, Quebec Prosperity: Taking the Next Step, The Unseen Wall: The Fraser Institute's Annual Trade Survey, and Economic Freedom of the Arab World.

Recent Research by Fred McMahon

Human Freedom Index 2023

— Dec 19, 2023

According to this year’s Human Freedom Index, Hong Kong—which in 2010 was the third-freest jurisdiction on earth—now ranks 46th as a result of mainland China’s increasing restrictions on liberties in the territory. China is among the least-free, ranking 149th out of 165 jurisdictions this year.

Economic Freedom of North America 2023

— Nov 9, 2023

Economic Freedom of North America is an annual report which measures government spending, taxation and labour market restrictions across 50 U.S. states, 32 Mexican states, 10 Canadian provinces, and the US territory of Puerto Rico, and found that this year, for the first time, every Canadian province ranks in the bottom half of jurisdictions, with Alberta (the highest-ranking province) only being tied for 31st place out of 93 in the all-government index.

Visit our interactive Economic Freedom of North America website

Economic Freedom of the World: 2023 Annual Report

— Sep 19, 2023

Economic Freedom of the World report measures the economic freedom of individuals—their ability to make their own economic decisions—by analyzing the policies and institutions of 165 jurisdictions. This year, for the first time in the history of the report, Hong Kong has fallen to second place overall while Canada has one of the fastest growth rates in size of government in the world.