Renew North American trade deal to defend democratic values: U.S. chamber CEO
Canada might be outmatched by the U.S. on raw spending power, but retooling the way Ottawa signs off on infrastructure projects could help it gain ground in the race to build North America's green economy, industry leaders say.
But the federal government had better hurry: lawmakers on Capitol Hill already have the same idea.
Resource companies are less attracted to monetary incentives than they are to the decidedly less sexy idea of regulatory consistency and predictability, TC Energy president and CEO Francois Poirier said Monday.
Given the choice of whether to deploy resources in Canada, the U.S. or Mexico, "the size of the incentives is not the determining factor in my decisions," Poirier told a gathering of business executives in Washington, D.C.
Factors like consistent timelines and permitting criteria for any given project are decidedly more attractive to stability-craving companies than the multibillion-dollar subsidies on offer in the U.S., he said.
And it may only be days or weeks before the U.S. catches up, if a permitting reform bill from West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin ends up part of any forthcoming deal between Republicans and the White House on the debt ceiling.
"While Canada and Mexico are pondering how to achieve parity or close to parity with the U.S. to attract capital to be invested in energy, the U.S. has already moved on to the realization that permitting reform is critical," Poirier said.
"My advice to our Canadian government and to the government in Mexico would be to provide as much certainty as possible with respect to permitting."
President Joe Biden is scheduled to meet with House and Senate leaders Tuesday to talk about the impasse over the debt ceiling, a legislative threshold that restricts the government's borrowing power.
The U.S. could hit that limit early next month, fuelling the prospect of a default, a catastrophe that would plunge the country into a deep recession, end millions of jobs and shake economic foundations around the globe.
Media reports suggest the contours of a deal could be taking shape this week -- a deal that would include passage of Manchin's permitting reform bill, which would streamline U.S. approvals for energy and infrastructure projects.
"If we are to achieve our ambitions for emission reductions by 2030, we only have a couple of years where we can make meaningful change and implement that change in time," Poirier said.
"Speeding up regulatory processes -- but also, more importantly, making them predictable and consistent among the three jurisdictions -- is really what's necessary for all of those countries who are competing with the U.S."
A unified economic front was a key theme of the North American Business Summit, a trilateral gathering of executives hosted by the Business Council of Canada, the U.S. chamber and the U.S.-Mexico Foundation.
Central to that goal must be ensuring the continued survival of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, which replaced NAFTA in 2020, said U.S. Chamber of Commerce CEO Suzanne Clark.
The USMCA, known in Canada as CUSMA, is as much about Western values as it is about growth, Clark said as she urged her audience to ensure the agreement survives.
Unlike its predecessor, the USMCA includes a sunset clause that requires all three countries to sit down for a comprehensive review every six years to ensure all parties are still satisfied.
That deadline is still three years away, but the time is now to stand up and defend the agreement -- not just for shared economic prosperity, but for the sake of democracy itself.
"If we, together, don't define global leadership -- if we don't lead on global challenges and meet the opportunities of the future -- others like China and Russia will fill that void," Clark said.
She acknowledged the ever-present "irritants" that continue to prompt questions about just how committed the three countries are to both the letter and the spirit of the deal.
In the 33 months since USMCA went into effect in July 2020, 17 disputes have been launched, compared with a total of 77 initiated over the course of NAFTA's 25-year lifespan.
The U.S. remains unhappy with how Canada has allocated the quotas that give American dairy producers access to markets north of the border. Canada and Mexico both took issue with how the U.S. defined foreign auto content. And Canada and the U.S. oppose Mexico favouring state-owned energy providers.
"We have to resolve these issues not only to prove that USMCA works, not only to fill the potential of the deal, but also -- most importantly -- to prove that we can do it, that we are committed to making this agreement strong," Clark said.
She didn't mention Donald Trump by name, but the former president, the principal instigator of the effort to renegotiate NAFTA, is already the perceived front-runner for the 2024 Republican nomination.
Whatever the threat to the USMCA, be it an unfriendly U.S. administration or a politically fraught review process, it's vital that "the economic case is indisputable, that no one can say this agreement isn't maximizing North American competitiveness."
The agreement underpins the ability of the three countries to collaborate on priorities like food and energy security, resilient supply chains, transparency, stability and due process, she added.
"When these factors are not present, investment can't thrive, the economies cannot grow, jobs cannot be created and we do not enjoy prosperity," Clark said.
"When they are absent, corruption thrives, ambiguity reigns, investment dollars flee and tax revenues plummet."
IN DEPTH
Jagmeet Singh pulls NDP out of deal with Trudeau Liberals, takes aim at Poilievre Conservatives
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has pulled his party out of the supply-and-confidence agreement that had been helping keep Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's minority Liberals in power.
'Not the result we wanted': Trudeau responds after surprise Conservative byelection win in Liberal stronghold
Conservative candidate Don Stewart winning the closely-watched Toronto-St. Paul's federal byelection, and delivering a stunning upset to Justin Trudeau's candidate Leslie Church in the long-time Liberal riding, has sent political shockwaves through both parties.
'We will go with the majority': Liberals slammed by opposition over proposal to delay next election
The federal Liberal government learned Friday it might have to retreat on a proposal within its electoral reform legislation to delay the next vote by one week, after all opposition parties came out to say they can't support it.
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
NDP needs to decide whether 4 million Canadians deserve dental care: minister
Procurement Minister and newly appointed Quebec lieutenant Jean-Yves Duclos is warning the NDP that the dental care program it helped put into place will be in jeopardy if it pulls its support from the governing Liberals.
Coffee could be more than a morning pick-me-up, according to new research
A morning cup of coffee may do more than just perk you up, according to new research.
Building collapse in Naples leaves 2 siblings dead and mother and another woman trapped
A two-story building collapsed in the southern Italian province of Naples early Sunday, killing two young siblings and leaving their mother and an older woman trapped, firefighters said.
Nick Kolomyja reckons axe throwing may have saved his life.
'Hubris and greed': Takeaways from the first week of U.S. Coast Guard inquiry into the Titan submersible disaster
More than a year after the Titan submersible imploded, killing all five voyagers on board, the story of the ill-fated expedition to the Titanic has taken the form of a modern-day Greek tragedy overflowing with mortal pride and heedlessness.
Marxist lawmaker Anura Dissanayake claims victory in Sri Lanka's presidential election
Marxist lawmaker Anura Kumara Dissanayake on Sunday claimed he had won Sri Lanka’s presidential election.
What is the U.S. Electoral College? America's path to the presidency, explained
In less than two months, Americans will go to the polls to choose their next president. But the process that translates those millions of votes into one seat in the Oval Office is much more complicated than a straight tally.
Sunken superyacht believed to contain watertight safes with sensitive intelligence data
Specialist divers surveying the wreckage of the US$40 million superyacht that sank off Sicily in August, killing seven people including British tech tycoon Mike Lynch, have asked for heightened security to guard the vessel, over concerns that sensitive data locked in its safes may interest foreign governments, multiple sources told CNN.
Myths busted and lessons learned: John Vennavally-Rao on his surgery to reverse his ostomy
Twenty-seven year Â鶹´«Ã½ reporter and anchor John Vennavally-Rao shares his story of what it was like to have an ostomy bag as part of his health-care battle. 'I’m grateful for what it did to extend my life,' he writes in a personal column for CTVNews.ca.
Local Spotlight
Cole Haas is more than just an avid fan of the F.W. Johnson Wildcats football team. He's a fixture on the sidelines, a source of encouragement, and a beloved member of the team.
Getting a photograph of a rainbow? Common. Getting a photo of a lightning strike? Rare. Getting a photo of both at the same time? Extremely rare, but it happened to a Manitoba photographer this week.
An anonymous business owner paid off the mortgage for a New Brunswick not-for-profit.
They say a dog is a man’s best friend. In the case of Darren Cropper, from Bonfield, Ont., his three-year-old Siberian husky and golden retriever mix named Bear literally saved his life.
A growing group of brides and wedding photographers from across the province say they have been taken for tens of thousands of dollars by a Barrie, Ont. wedding photographer.
Paleontologists from the Royal B.C. Museum have uncovered "a trove of extraordinary fossils" high in the mountains of northern B.C., the museum announced Thursday.
The search for a missing ancient 28-year-old chocolate donkey ended with a tragic discovery Wednesday.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is celebrating an important milestone in the organization's history: 50 years since the first women joined the force.
It's been a whirlwind of joyful events for a northern Ontario couple who just welcomed a baby into their family and won the $70 million Lotto Max jackpot last month.