Canada has long had an uneasy relationship with its own strengths. We have often treated our abundant natural resources as liabilities rather than assets, taken our largest customer—the United States—for granted, and benefited from a North American security umbrella that allowed us to prioritize social spending while underinvesting in defence.
That era appears to be ending.
Canada is now scrambling to avoid what could amount to a forced economic "Canexit" from its most important market. The United Kingdom's experience with Brexit should serve as a warning. If reliable access to the U.S. market is significantly weakened, many international manufacturers will have far less reason to invest in Canada.
At home, we face additional self-imposed challenges. Multiculturalism has brought many benefits, but too often Canada has confused tolerance with the obligation to tolerate intolerance. A successful liberal democracy requires reciprocity: those who enjoy Canada's freedoms should also embrace the values that make those freedoms possible.
Meanwhile, Canada's productivity problem has become chronic. Prosperity cannot be sustained without stronger productivity growth. That requires policies that encourage investment, reward entrepreneurship, and give businesses confidence that capital will remain and grow in Canada rather than seek more attractive jurisdictions.
None of this will be easy. Canada's federal structure makes major reform difficult. Policies that benefit the country as a whole often run into provincial resistance. Ironically, provinces that still maintain barriers to trade with one another insist on unfettered access to markets south of the border.
Any major national project must also include meaningful consultation with Indigenous peoples, whose rights deserve respect and whose perspectives are diverse. There is no single Indigenous voice, making consensus both essential and challenging.
Canada has formidable advantages: immense natural wealth, talented people, stable institutions, and proximity to the world's largest economy. Whether we capitalize on those advantages will depend on the choices we make now.
On this Canada Day, let us wish Prime Minister Mark Carney the wisdom, courage, and pragmatism to steer Canada toward a more productive, more prosperous, and more united future.
The best and the brightest always seek opportunities and are recruited by those with opportunities to offer. In the 70s when you arrived it was difficult for that cohort of your Canadians to leave, especially for the U.S. If your grandchildren are as gifted as you are they too will be recruited and you may want them to accept opportunities that come their way.
Canada has long had an uneasy relationship with its own strengths. We have often treated our abundant natural resources as liabilities rather than assets, taken our largest customer—the United States—for granted, and benefited from a North American security umbrella that allowed us to prioritize social spending while underinvesting in defence.
That era appears to be ending.
Canada is now scrambling to avoid what could amount to a forced economic "Canexit" from its most important market. The United Kingdom's experience with Brexit should serve as a warning. If reliable access to the U.S. market is significantly weakened, many international manufacturers will have far less reason to invest in Canada.
At home, we face additional self-imposed challenges. Multiculturalism has brought many benefits, but too often Canada has confused tolerance with the obligation to tolerate intolerance. A successful liberal democracy requires reciprocity: those who enjoy Canada's freedoms should also embrace the values that make those freedoms possible.
Meanwhile, Canada's productivity problem has become chronic. Prosperity cannot be sustained without stronger productivity growth. That requires policies that encourage investment, reward entrepreneurship, and give businesses confidence that capital will remain and grow in Canada rather than seek more attractive jurisdictions.
None of this will be easy. Canada's federal structure makes major reform difficult. Policies that benefit the country as a whole often run into provincial resistance. Ironically, provinces that still maintain barriers to trade with one another insist on unfettered access to markets south of the border.
Any major national project must also include meaningful consultation with Indigenous peoples, whose rights deserve respect and whose perspectives are diverse. There is no single Indigenous voice, making consensus both essential and challenging.
Canada has formidable advantages: immense natural wealth, talented people, stable institutions, and proximity to the world's largest economy. Whether we capitalize on those advantages will depend on the choices we make now.
On this Canada Day, let us wish Prime Minister Mark Carney the wisdom, courage, and pragmatism to steer Canada toward a more productive, more prosperous, and more united future.
The best and the brightest always seek opportunities and are recruited by those with opportunities to offer. In the 70s when you arrived it was difficult for that cohort of your Canadians to leave, especially for the U.S. If your grandchildren are as gifted as you are they too will be recruited and you may want them to accept opportunities that come their way.
correction, it should have read "that cohort of YOUNG Canadians to leave"