Justin Trudeau is Failing on Trade

November 22, 2018 · 0 Comments

Written by David Tilson

Trade is essential to the growth and prosperity of any country. It also creates jobs. Unfortunately, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the current Liberal government have failed to secure new trade deals while capitulating to President Donald Trump on the new United-States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) and exposing our economy to the President’s unpredictable whims. Prime Minister Trudeau recently travelled to Singapore and Papua New Guinea to participate in the 33rd Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders’ Meeting. However, he hasn’t secured new trade deals for Canadian workers and businesses.

During the ASEAN Working Lunch, Prime Minister Trudeau touted Canada as a highly desirable partner for trade and investment. He also indicated that he hopes to start official negotiations on a trade agreement with the Association of Southwest Asian Nations by next spring. Canada has been lobbying to join the East Asia Summit; however, there’s no sign these efforts have paid off.

In stark contrast to the current Liberal government under the leadership of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Canada’s Conservatives are our country’s party of free trade. On our watch, Canadian workers and businesses won free trade access to more than 50 countries around the world, creating hundreds of thousands of jobs and opening up opportunities for everyone.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s trade failures are putting that hard-won legacy at risk and Canadians will feel the consequences. In just three years, the Prime Minister has failed to secure a trade deal with China and delayed and nearly derailed plans for Canada to join the CPTPP trade agreement. Worst of all, he made massive concessions to the United States at the NAFTA negotiation table.

Canadians won’t be fooled when they hear Prime Minister Trudeau talking about expanding our free trade access. Due to his failed record, he can’t be trusted to secure any deals in the interests of Canadian workers and businesses. His failure on trade, as well as his other failures, including: the economy, border security, cracking down on crime, and ethics, has real consequences for Canadians. These failures make life more expensive, make Canadians less safe, make it harder for Canadians to find opportunities, and ultimately, make Canadians have less confidence in their government.

Canadians deserve more from their government. We, the Conservative Official Opposition, will continue to hold Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accountable for his failure on trade and for his other failures since forming government in 2015. We will also give Canadians a strong alternative to four more years of the current Prime Minister and his Liberal government.