Government must lay foundation for a secure, resilient Canada
Originally published at https://www.therecord.com on May 3, 2020.
“The new normal” — words ascribed to our physically distanced lives as we’re removed from the continuance we know. It’s unnatural and unsettling.
Yet while we’re forced to accept this new normal for the foreseeable future, we won’t accept it as our future.
That’s where resiliency comes in. We Canadians are resilient people. We’ll recover, restore, and thrive. But concerningly, the foundation underpinning our efforts is an increasingly vulnerable one.
Ultimately, a secure Canada is a more resilient Canada, and although more run-ins with crises are inevitable, there are foundation-building policies our government can and must implement to ensure we’re better prepared to weather or circumvent the next storm.
Through health, economic, defence, law and order, and fiscal lenses, the following policies — while neither new nor exhaustive — are vital to securing a strong, stable footing for Canada.
Onshoring the health-care supply chain: Said best on T-shirts and lawn signs around Waterloo Region, “Our heroes wear scrubs.” Frontline health-care workers have been Herculean in combating this pandemic, putting themselves and their families at risk in the process. Sadly, they’ve experienced increased exposure to COVID-19 due to shortages in personal protective equipment (PPE).
A dependency on China for PPE adds insult to injury, as supplies they’ve sent to Canada have been in large quantities defective. While it’s likely that producing health-care supplies in Canada will come with cost competitiveness challenges, we should nonetheless onshore and secure vital supply chains.
Unlocking the power of the private sector: Businesses here in Waterloo Region and all across Canada have stepped up massively to fight COVID-19. They’ll do so again to lead the economic resurgence, but the federal government needs to clear the runway.
The business community has repeatedly called for a lessening of Canada’s undue tax and regulatory burdens. Our convoluted tax system’s last formal review occurred in the 1960s. Much has changed since then. A Royal Commission on tax reform should be launched to enhance fairness and competitiveness. Canada should also implement a “one in, two out” cost-based, regulation replacement plan for continuous easing.
Reducing dependence on China: Chinese Canadians are community builders and have been leaders in our Waterloo Region PPE drives during this crisis. The Communist Party of China’s hostility in no way reflects the great contributions of Chinese Canadians.
Woefully, the regime’s COVID-19 lies and coverups have afflicted the world. Further, China is responsible for the unlawful detainment of two Canadians, blockage of Canadian imports, and continued hacking of our information infrastructure.
While our military calls for a ban of regime-backed Huawei from Canada’s 5G networks — as our country’s Five-Eyes intelligence partners have done — our government is puzzlingly complacent. We must ban Huawei and reduce our dependence on China.
Strengthening the rule of law: Canada recently experienced weeks of illegal rail blockades, slowing the economy, forcing layoffs, and scaring off investment. It took negative opinion polls to finally move the government to act. Additionally, years of illegal border crossings have been permitted, only now having been temporarily addressed as they risked Canada’s pandemic containment.
Gaps in our laws, as well as delays or inaction in enforcing them, risk compromising the integrity and resiliency of Canada’s economy and systems. Alberta’s recently drafted “Critical Infrastructure Defense Act” should be adopted nationwide to secure Canadians’ safety and our economy, and the Safe Third Country Agreement loophole with the U.S. must be closed for orderly immigration.
Re-establishing fiscal prudence: Unquestionably, deep deficits are needed right now to help Canadians through this crisis. Highly questionable, however, has been Canada’s fiscal management over the last five years.
Despite a strong global economy, Canada’s debt grew by north of $84 billion, representing a significant departure from the fiscal stewardship of former prime ministers Stephen Harper, Paul Martin and Jean Chrétien. Fraser Institute economists calculated that had Prime Minister Justin Trudeau maintained the prudence demonstrated by his predecessors, the savings could have covered a significant portion of 2020’s stimulus.
Instead, after years of what former NDP leader Thomas Mulcair calls “spending like drunken sailors,” Canadians have been left to shoulder an intemperate debt burden with our taxes. Balanced budgets during good economic years must be reintegrated into the lexicon of sound government.
As Stephen R. Covey wisely advised: “The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.” Our Constitution conveniently prescribes that for federal leaders: Peace, Order, and Good Government. It’s not exciting, but it’s not supposed to be. The excitement belongs to Canadians in pursuit of a good life and the Canadian Dream — a pursuit that’s undermined when our government neglects foundational responsibilities.
Securing vital supply chains, economic competitiveness, defences, the rule of law, and fiscal sustainability — all foundational for a more resilient Canada. Yet all are teetering.
As we Canadians physically reconnect in time, we need a government focused on securing the foundation upon which we toil, strive, and create means to excite.
A more resilient Canada for inspiringly resilient Canadians.
That’s a “new normal” we can get behind.
Originally published at https://www.therecord.com on May 3, 2020.
