MR. HARPERS ECONOMIC VIEW IS TOO NARROW Last week, as world petroleum prices tumbled, triggering a slump in stock markets, a lower Canadian dollar and renewed warnings about government revenues, there was a clear policy message for the Harper government - your plans for the economy are too narrowly based, leaving Canada unnecessarily exposed to greater risks. Since taking power in 2006, Mr. Harper has had only two clear economic policy thrusts. First, his obsession with eviscerating the Government of Canada in every way he possibly can, regardless of the impact on important federal services. And second, his predominant reliance on the natural resources private sector for investment, growth and jobs. The weakness in such an approach is obvious. The markets for most Canadian natural resources are global. When those markets are booming, the benefits for Canada can be impressive. And thank goodness they have been, because without growth in basic resource industries in provinces like Saskatchewan and Alberta, Canada might not have had any net economic growth at all over the past half-decade. But heres the rub - when resources hit a rough patch, Canada has too little to fall back on because our national economic base has become too limited. We dont have enough eggs in other baskets. We need to become more proficient at many more things than exporting raw resources alone. And even within the resources sector, the Harper governments narrow focus is counterproductive. In their near-mindless hacking and slashing of the federal role in relation to environmental integrity, for example, they have created a global reputation for Canada as an irresponsible environmental laggard. That negative image - deserved or not - is the biggest single impediment blocking US government approval for the Keystone-XL pipeline. If Mr. Harper had even a modicum of environmental credibility, this project could have been green-lit long ago. The lack of market access for Canadian energy products brought on by Mr. Harpers policy delinquency is costing producers billions of dollars in lost global prices. Beyond convincing our trading partners that Canada can be trusted once again on key global concerns like the environment, the federal government also urgently needs a growth agenda that includes, but extends far beyond, resource developments. The Harper government seems caught in a time warp, out-of-touch with the current realities and aspirations of typical middle-class Canadians and all those who are working so hard just to make it to the middle-class. Its just like 2008 all over again when Mr. Harper dismissed a looming recession as merely a good buying opportunity and prescribed five years of federal austerity as the solution. He was so, so wrong. And now, he is presiding over over the worst economic growth record of any Prime Minister since R.B. Bennett in the 1930s, global growth is sputtering, Europe is in big trouble, even China is slowing, the energy sector is showing some vulnerability, new global security risks and health threats have emerged, and whats the Harper plan? The same mistaken scheme he tried in 2008! But Canadians have moved on. A clear majority feel neither this government nor the country are headed in the right direction. They want change, including an economic agenda for broad-based growth that doesnt leave out big regions of the country, sectors of the economy or portions of the population. The elements of such a growth agenda are becoming clearer. Transformative investments in public infrastructure are one cornerstone - the most cost-effective way to drive jobs and growth nationally, improve productivity and capture the value of low interest rates in long-term capital assets. Another key component is greater access to all forms of post-secondary education and higher skills. Another is science and innovation. Another is persistent global branding and marketing to build a consistent Canadian trade surplus. Policies like these would help to broaden and deepen the economy nationally and in all of Canadas regions. They will get lip service from the Harper government, but little substantive action. His focus will remain narrow. And the winds of political change will continue to grow stronger.
Posted on: Mon, 20 Oct 2014 12:14:57 +0000
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