Tax cuts and infrastructure spending promised by Prime Minister Designate Justin Trudeau is likely to spur retail spending but the new government’s position is still unclear on some important retail issues.
High credit card interchange fees, which are many times that of other industrialized countries, has long been a grievance for retailers, according to Retail Council of Canada government relations director Greg Wilson.
“The Liberals didn’t have a position on that issue so we’re going to have to work with them on it,” he said.
Similarly, retailers’ desire for free trade and low tariff barriers is unclear.
Trudeau assured voters that his Liberal Party supports trade but he did not take a position on the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact involving 12 Pacific Rim countries.
“The Liberals looked cautiously optimistic so we’re the same,” Wilson said.
“We look at trade agreements as lowering costs for consumers of goods and as reducing tariffs, which is good. Any tariff reduction is good news.”
Another good thing that Wilson believes will come from a Liberal majority is pension reform.
Provinces, such as Ontario, had made noises about creating a separate, provincial pension plan because provincial leaders viewed the Canadian pension plan as inadequate.
Trudeau promised during the campaign that he would meet with provincial premiers to try to reach an agreement on pension reform – something Prime Minister Stephen Harper refused to do.
Many retailers reach their senior years and retire to live on what turns out to be an inadequate pension, Wilson said. Changes will likely involve more federal money as well as more costs to employers and workers but the result will likely be a more efficiently run program than having the duplication of two plans, he explained.
The huge number of new MPs also means that the retail sector will have to start making new friends and lobby from scratch to educate representatives that retailers employ about 2.2 million Canadians and have total sales of more than $350 million.
Wilson lamented that government can overlook the needs of retailers because it has a sectoral approach where industries such as forestry, fisheries and oil and gas are highlighted.
“There’s no minister of retail anywhere,” Wilson said. “That wouldn’t be overly practical but it would be useful to see retail training emphasized at a greater level.”
