Poilievre said that if the Conservatives win the next election, he’ll reward provinces with a ‘free trade bonus’ each time they remove a trade barrier
OTTAWA — On the eve of a massive trade war with the United States, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is calling for Canada to drop longstanding trade barriers between provinces to lessen the impact of American trade uncertainties.
“If the idea is to compensate laggards that haven’t already taken action, I can see a few provinces pushing back on that,” said Stephenson.
Stephenson said Alberta would be well within its rights to demand compensation for its past actions to promote internal trade.
Christopher Kukucha, a professor of Canadian intergovernmental relations at the University of Lethbridge, says there’s a good reason the rhetoric on internal trade hasn’t added up to results, pointing to the benefits of internal trade barriers for some businesses.
“Many of the industries protected by internal trade benefit from the lack of competition as they have difficulty competing in open markets. Some provincial governments also enjoy the revenue generated from regulating these barriers.”
National Post
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