Back-slapping among provincial trade ministers aside, meaningful congratulations for the recently announced Canadian Free Trade Agreement (CFTA) will have to wait until internal trade barriers are really removed in this country.
The April 7 CFTA announcement ushering in what appears to be a new deal to streamline interprovincial trade and remove regulatory tripwires to open commerce between Canada’s provinces is still just that: an announcement that recognizes the work that needs to be done to improve internal trade.
Canada has been big on pushing for free trade agreements in the wider world. The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement with the European Union approved by the European Parliament in February is the most recent example. But big thinking abroad has contrasted with small thinking at home. The CFTA’s Agreement on Internal Trade predecessor dismantled some domestic trade barriers within Canada, but far too many remain. Regional protectionism also continues to distort local vision on national enterprise issues.
That every province and territory and the federal government have signed on to the CFTA is encouraging. But the provincial track record of embracing national issues is underwhelming. For example, the country is still without a national energy strategy to maximize the benefits of Canada’s energy riches and ensure that pipeline and other decisions co-ordinate provincial efforts rather than counter or duplicate them. It also needs a single securities regulator that would remove the complications of dealing with a baker’s dozen of jurisdictions that discourage global investment in Canadian enterprise. Regional self-
interests in a large and sparsely populated country have conspired to thwart success in establishing both.
If the CFTA can resolve such contentious domestic trade issues as alcohol sales between provinces, then real applause will be warranted.
Until that time, however, we have a road map to freer internal trade that will lead nowhere without political will.
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