Completing Canada’s Economic Union

Canadians have had an abiding dream – that by exchanging ideas, goods and services we enrich one another, that by opening ourselves to new products, to new thinking and to new approaches we make a better country and ultimately a better world.  One hundred and fifty years after Confederation, it is time to complete our economic union.

As we move to implement historic new trade agreements with our major economic partners, it is vital that Canada come together as a well-regulated single market for the free movement of people, goods, services, ideas, information and investment.  Our aim must be to have the most attractive, most unified and best regulated jurisdiction for business in the world.  By fully implementing the principle of mutual recognition, the federal government, provincial, territorial and municipal governments can make businesses more productive and successful, while raising income levels for Canadians in all sectors and in all parts of the country.

As Leader of the Opposition and Prime Minister, I would:

(i)             complete, strengthen and fully implement the Agreement on Internal Trade;

(ii)           ensure qualifications achieved in one province or territory are recognized in all others and that all Canadians seeking new jobs or new careers have access to skills training for the new economy;

(iii)          fully launch a national securities regulator;

(iv)          standardize workers’ compensation;

(v)           ensure common transport and manufacturing rules;

(vi)          unify corporate registration requirements;

(vii)        open procurement to all eligible suppliers;

(viii)       ensure free movement and sale of beer, wine and alcohol;

(ix)          mandate Statistics Canada to report on the performance of our economic union; and

(x)           invest in national infrastructure corridors to strengthen Canada’s economic union.