TURMOIL ON THE HILL

Turmoil on the Hill by Maj (ret'd) CORNELIU. CHISU, CD, PMSC, FEC, CET, P. Eng. Former Member of Parliament Pickering-Scarborough East The Fall session of the House of Commons in Ottawa is in full swing. It is not unusual to have emotional discussions in Parliament at this time of year. All the pent up energy accumulated by parliamentarians during the summer has to be released somehow. The parties are ready for political games. The governing Liberals are intent on holding onto power, and the opposition Conservatives are eager to oust them as soon as possible, while the polls favor them, and before they flatten out. Timing is essential in this political game of thrones. Speculations, maneuvers and emotions are running high in political Ottawa. Let us first consider the speculations. There are rumors that the Liberals are looking to challenge Trudeau’s leadership. Pressure is building on the Prime Minister and his office, as a growing number of anxious Liberal MPs, in a seemingly co-ordinated effort, want to force Justin Trudeau to step down as Liberal Party leader. This news is all over the anxious main media, citing multiple anonymous sources, as usual. Reliable gossip and innuendo? In conclusion, emotions and turmoil are high in Liberal circles these days. As the situation on challenging Trudeau’s leadership evolves, work in the House if Commons seems to be facing legislative paralysis. Speculations abound here as well, on the possible prorogation of parliament, in order to give some breathing space to the governing Liberals. In the meantime the Conservatives are pummeling the Liberals with the worn out old ploy ‘to kill the gas tax’, which seems to have become an obsession with them, in the absence of any new ideas. While this emotional turmoil ferments in Ottawa, life outside the capitol goes on. Sensitive problems Canada faces are quietly accumulating. These include the souring of relations between Canada and India centered on political interference issues, resulting in the reciprocal expulsion of diplomats. Perhaps the time has come for someone to ask how our foreign relations have managed to deteriorate so badly with so many countries. Not long ago, Canada was looked upon as a bacon of democracy and an example on how foreign relations should be conducted. As the political games continue to unfold in Ottawa, the diplomatic row between Canada and India, the world’s fastest-growing economy, could derail a trading relationship that already underperforms its potential. In particular, the latest developments suggest Canada can forget about any imminent progress toward the India-Canada Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), a proposed bilateral trade deal that the two countries have been negotiating in fits and starts since 2010. Canada continues to have deteriorating relations with China, both politically and economically. The trade battlefield with China widens as a result of the precedent-setting dispute over Canada’s EV tariffs. China’s investigation into Canada’s tariff hike to 100% on Chinese-made electric vehicles (EVs), made on the basis of combating “discriminatory” practices, has set a new precedent for future trade disputes. Canada has followed the lead of the United States and the European Union, in announcing last week, a 100-per-cent tariff on imports of Chinese electric vehicles and a 25-per-cent tariff on imported steel and aluminum from China. Comparatively, the bulk of China's electric vehicle exports to Canada is from Tesla's Shanghai factory and local Chinese firms do not have big exposure to that export market yet. In retaliation, China announced on August 3rd, that it plans to start an anti-dumping investigation into canola imports from Canada. After Ottawa moved to impose these tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, China raised prices of domestic rapeseed oil futures to a one-month high. The world's second largest economy imported 5.5 million tons of canola in 2023, valued at US $3.72 billion. Imports from Canada accounted for 94 per cent of the total. More than half of canola produced in Canada makes its way to China, the world's biggest oilseed importer. Canola, also called rapeseed for certain variants, is used as a cooking oil and in a wide range of products including renewable fuels. China will also initiate an anti-dumping investigation into some Canadian chemical products. Once again we are in danger of creating an economic crisis because we are not dealing intelligently with China. So here we stand. Instead of focusing on our role in the ever faster evolving world issues that impact Canada and our economy, our parliament is locked in useless political haggling and posturing, demonstrating our elected representatives’ competence in, and preparedness for, dealing with issues of consequence. Can we do more than hope that this will ever change? Will there ever again, be politicians in Canada who will do the right thing, finally serving the vital interests of Canadians? What do you think? .