Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said Monday that if he becomes prime minister he will implement a plan to boost internal trade in Canada that he says will increase the country’s gross domestic product.
Trade between provinces has become a focal point in discussions around Donald Trump’s tariffs, with Internal Trade Minister Anita Anand saying removing existing barriers “could lower prices by up to 15 per cent, boost productivity by up to seven per cent and add up to $200 billion to the domestic economy.”
Poilievre said Trump’s decision to slap 25 per cent tariffs on most Canadian imports, and 10 per cent on energy imports, is a “wake up call” signalling its time for provinces to work together to improve the flow of trade within the country.
“Canadians will expect all political leaders to do what it takes to make our country more self-reliant and less dependent on the Americans. It starts with trade at home,” Poilievre said in a statement.
He released a video and statement, calling for a plan that includes four key parts — although most of them are things already being worked on provincially or federally.
The Conservative Party said that while boosting internal trade will not be enough to make up for the economic losses caused by Trump’s tariffs, they will “make Canada less dependent on forces and countries outside of our control.”
Poilievre’s proposal has four key parts:
- Holding a meeting with Canada’s premiers within 30 days of becoming prime minister to discuss removing trade barriers.
- Work on developing a national standard for trucking rules to encourage east-west shipping over north-south shipping.
- Create a professional qualification recognized in all provinces that would allow doctors, nurses and engineers to work anywhere in the country.
- Offering a “free trade bonus” to provinces who drop trade barriers. Poilievre said the bonus would be funded out of the revenues realized by increased trade activity that takes place once trade barriers are dropped.
Canada already has a pilot project for national trucking standards. The prime minister has already started meeting with the premiers weekly, and the premiers also meet with the federal government via the committee on internal trade, which met as recently as Friday.
Provinces and the federal government have long worked to allow nurses, doctors and engineers to work anywhere in the country. Poilievre also made this proposal in 2023.
It was also discussed by the federal and provincial leaders as recently as Friday.
“These interprovincial barriers are destructive. They kill jobs, they drive up consumer prices,” Poilievre said in Vancouver Sunday. “Let’s knock them down and let’s be a truly free-trading economy ourselves.”
WATCH | Poilievre outlines 7-point response to Trump’s incoming tariffs:
Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poilievre is calling on the Liberal government to resume Parliament and adopt seven actions in response to U.S. tariffs on Canadian goods planned for Feb. 4.
According to a 2019 report from the International Monetary Fund, there are four categories of trade barriers in Canada
- Natural barriers such as geography.
- Prohibitive barriers such as restrictions on the sale of alcohol.
- Technical barriers such as vehicle weight standards.
- Regulatory barriers such as licensing and paperwork requirements.
Canada took a step toward reducing those barriers in 2017 when every province, territory and the federal government signed the Canadian Free Trade Agreement (CFTA), which created a formal and binding process to cut down existing trade barriers.
The deal applies to all interprovincial trade, but a detailed list of exemptions was negotiated for each province and territory — many of which still exist today. According to a report from the Montreal Economic Institute (MEI), in 2023 there were a total of 245 exemptions across all provinces and territories.
The Conservatives say the deal and its many exemptions and complications need to be ironed out so trade can flow freely within the country.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the premiers have been meeting in recent weeks to discuss their response to the tariffs and a part of those discussions have centred around dismantling the long-standing internal barriers.
There seems to be some agreement that divergent provincial laws around everything from alcohol sales to first-aid kits and truck tire sizes need to be scrapped to promote freer trade among the provinces.