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United States President Donald Trump and Mark Carney agree on at least one thing: both think their country’s auto sector can survive American tariffs . But the Liberal Leader said Canada’s auto sector would need to be reimagined to achieve that.

“We can sustain an auto industry with the U.S. having tariffs with access to other markets,” he said during a March 27 press conference. “Provided we engage very deliberately in partnership — government, business, labour — to reimagine the auto sector.”

It’s an idea that’s gaining traction in policy circles as the U.S. seeks to undo the decades-long integration of the two countries’ auto sectors that was cemented by the 1965 auto pact.

The pact was not a free-trade agreement, but it created a duty-remission scheme that allowed U.S. automakers to offset tariffs in Canada by increasing the Canadian content in their vehicles. It came about because policymakers viewed Canada’s auto sector as too small to survive on its own, with domestic manufacturers unable to achieve the economies of scale necessary to be competitive.

Designed to ensure Canada’s auto sector survived, the pact led to a tight integration with the U.S. so that parts and vehicles could cross the border multiple times before being finished for the consumer market.

But Trump’s tariffs threaten to upend the industry’s six-decade-old model. Around 85 per cent of the vehicles manufactured in Canada are exported to the U.S. and they would likely no longer be competitively priced if the tariffs are implemented.

Scheduled to start being collected at midnight on Thursday, the tariffs will apply a flat 25 per cent tax on all finished vehicles not manufactured in the U.S. But in a twist that would essentially reverse the two countries’ integrated auto sectors, the tariffs on the finished car will be reduced based on the value of any auto parts that were made in the U.S. There could be additional 25 per cent tariffs on auto parts made in Canada at an unspecified date.

That’s led some analysts to question whether there have been enough changes in technology, trade and the economy in the six decades since the auto pact was signed that Canada’s auto sector could survive on its own.

Their premise is that Canada has the capacity to make as many vehicles as its consumers purchase each year, which is around two million vehicles.

“There’s certainly a strong economic argument to be made that we actually don’t have net exports in vehicles to the U.S.,” Bentley Allan, a professor of political science at Johns Hopkins University and a principal at the Ottawa-based Transition Accelerator think tank, said. “It’s pretty much an even trade, so let’s just bring all those exports of auto parts and autos back over on this side of the border.”

The idea is that existing auto manufacturers in Canada would continue producing the models already being built or planned to be built here, which includes sedans, SUVs, sports cars, minivans and pickup trucks such as the Honda Civic and Toyota RAV4.

If Canada could produce a half-dozen models that account for the majority of vehicles purchased here, and imports from other countries account for the remainder, then it could work, Allan said.

But that would require radical change in the way the auto sector currently works since some auto parts reportedly cross the borders of Canada, Mexico or the U.S. as many as eight times during vehicle assembly. That’s partly why there were an estimated 2.5 million truck crossings in 2023 on the Ambassador Bridge, which separates Windsor, Ont., and Detroit — the two countries’ respective auto-sector capitals.

Trading treaties

The original North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) eliminated nearly all tariffs on trade between Canada, Mexico and the U.S. This changed under the 2018 Canada-United-States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA), which penalized automaker s that do not meet minimum thresholds for how much work on a vehicle is carried out by workers earning a minimum hourly wage of US$16. It also added regional content requirements for how much of the vehicle must be built in North American plants.

In apparent violation of that agreement, Trump is now erecting 25 per cent tariffs on vehicles built in Canada, in addition to existing tariffs on steel and aluminum, and he has put in reciprocal flat-rate tariffs on most countries’ products.

To survive those trade barriers, vehicles built in Canada will need to use as many domestic auto parts as possible, Carney said at his Mar. 27 press conference. By “backwards integrating” domestic steel and aluminum into auto production, the auto sector could start moving away from its U.S.-based export model, he said.

“We’re going to have to make some big changes, but we can make those big changes,” he said. “We do have options; we do have agency; we do have power.”

Building out the domestic auto supply chain could also attract investment in the domestic industry. In the meantime, Carney proposed creating a $2-billion Strategic Response Fund to aid the auto sector during this transformation.

There are, of course, risks and consequences to be considered. For example, auto exports sold into the U.S. bring U.S. dollars into the economy, which affects the value of the Canadian dollar.

Mexico is also a net exporter of auto parts to the U.S. and will be looking for other markets such as Canada for its products. But Canada will need to absorb the vehicles it currently exports, so that relationship may face some tension.

If the tariffs do bring Canada’s auto production to a halt, i t would amount to $330 million in losses and two per cent in production volume for each week of closure, with losses growing over time, according to analysts at Oxford Economists.

The tariffs alone are likely to spur more than 2,000 layoffs and reduce auto exports in 2025 by six per cent or $550 million, they said in a note on Monday, and those figures double if Canada imposes parallel 25 per cent counter-tariffs on U.S. vehicles and auto parts.

Another transformation in progress

The trade war arrives with the auto sector already in the midst of a major transformation: automakers are seeking to transition to producing battery electric vehicles instead of mainly internal combustion engine vehicles. Achieving the necessary economies of scale and building the required supply chains for this change is expected to be expensive and time-consuming, taking at least a decade.

The federal government as well as the Ontario and Quebec provincial governments have already committed as much as $52.4 billion to be distributed over the next half-decade or so in the form of tax credits, production subsidies and other support to automakers and battery companies that have agreed to invest $46 billion in an electric vehicle supply chain.

Allan said he initially thought the governments’ EV strategy cost too much money for the number of jobs it created, but changed his mind in the current context; with Trump pulling the U.S. back from the EV transition and talking about cancelling investments in the EV supply chain, it suddenly makes a lot more sense.

“We can’t start deleting things that are helping us diversify our trade at this moment,” he said, “especially not clean energy future opportunities.”

Based on a Transition Accelerator analysis, investments in Canada’s EV supply chain are already showing up in export tables. For example, Canadian battery exports to the U.S. were valued at $1.4 billion in 2024.

The analysis said EVs and EV parts exponentially grew over the past three years, a sign that the nascent industry is finding momentum, even though only a small number of EV supply chain projects have received government support or been built yet.

There is another factor lurking in the background: Canada’s current export-based model of auto manufacturing has led to a sector in decline, one that is shedding manufacturing capacity and running a trade deficit.

In 2024, auto production in Canada was just under 1.3 million vehicles, a 55 per cent decline from the peak of 2.9 million vehicles manufactured in the early 2000s, according to DesRosiers Automotive Consultants Inc., a research firm. By contrast, Canadians purchased almost 1.9 million vehicles in 2024.

Part of the reason for the trade deficit is that some auto plants in Canada are closed for retooling, but auto production here has been in decline for a decade and hit a nadir in 2021 at 1.1 million vehicles, according to DesRosiers.

“One of the things that we really have to seriously look at is this question of how you maintain some sort of proportionate representation in that sector of the economy,” Stephen Beatty, who retired as corporate counsel to Toyota Canada Inc. last year, said. “We’re not the cheapest place to make things, and we aren’t the biggest marketplace. As a result, there are these forces that pull automotive away from Canada.”

Beatty said that despite Trump offering multiple reasons for imposing his tariffs, including fentanyl trafficking and border security, he believes his real goal is to repatriate manufacturing to the U.S.

That would be a drastic departure from accepted policy that Trump embraced during his first term in office, when his administration signed CUSMA and envisioned all three countries working together to produce automobiles.

Even that free trade agreement marked a shift away from globalization and toward regionalization.

But Beatty pointed out that CUSMA ushered in a rules-of-origin model that encouraged companies to manufacture in North America and laid out how to determine where a vehicle is manufactured, given that it was likely assembled using parts manufactured in multiple countries.

The rules of origin, he said, were a departure from the auto pact’s “duty-remission” scheme, even if both were aimed at integrating North America’s auto market.

“If I look at what the U.S. administration is saying these days,” Beatty said, “it’s kind of a throwback to the type of trade thinking that was in place in the ’60s when you wanted to link import and export benefits, and there may be scope … to return to some elements of that in a negotiated deal.”

One factor at play is that China’s auto sector in 2024 produced more vehicles than any other country for the first time and, importantly for global trade, its exports have rapidly grown to six million vehicles in 2024 from one million vehicles in 2020, according to the U.S.-based Council on Foreign Relations.

That competitive threat to other countries has not gone unnoticed in either the U.S. or Canada, which both enacted 100 per cent tariffs on Chinese EVs in 2024. Nevertheless, there are lingering concerns and questions about how long such tariffs could persist and whether Chinese EV makers could set up factories in Mexico, essentially creating a backdoor to bring vehicles into the lucrative U.S. market.

How to preserve North American vehicle manufacturing is likely to generate more and more noise if tariffs cripple the domestic sector and China expands its reach.

“Cars have always been interesting because they are the apex of good in a manufacturing chain,” Allan said. “It’s an anchor for your broad-based manufacturing capabilities.”

Vehicles are complex combinations of bent steel and aluminum, rubber and plastic, but they increasingly contain semiconductors, software and even artificial intelligence programming — the components of a modern economy.

Tellingly, the intergovernmental economic forum known as the G7 , which helps set global policy priorities amongst some of the world’s largest economy countries and which Canada joined in 1976, has never included a nation that lacked a vehicle manufacturing sector.

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In Canada, vehicles rank as the country’s second-largest export, valued at $51 billion, so a collapse could send ripples through the economy at a time when the total impact of all the Trump tariffs — which include orders targeting all Canadian goods not compliant with CUSMA, steel and aluminum as well as a flat reciprocal tariff rate — could trigger an economic recession.

Against that backdrop, everyone from Ontario Premier Doug Ford to Carney is saying Canada needs to figure out a solution to control its economy.

“You cannot have the entire auto chain come to a crashing halt; that will send ripples through the economy,” Beatty said. “It has to continue and companies have to do their best to minimize the impacts and try to squeeze margins anywhere they can up and down the supply chain, but some of it will get passed on.”

• Email: gfriedman@postmedia.com

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The sale is subject to certain customary closing conditions, including regulatory approval

The latest iconic restaurant brand to falter in the face of stubborn inflation and Americans’ fading interest in eating out

The Canadian Urban Libraries Council also called on the government to exempt books

Every Canadian I meet is in a flurry about the impact of potential tariffs that change in scope and size with the wind. What do we do to cope? Be calm, be confident, focus on facts.

The negotiating approach of the U.S. administration is to upset opponents. Don’t let that happen. We control how we feel, no one else.

Tariffs have been imposed, removed, imposed, removed, imposed with some qualifiers. Don’t panic every time a new announcement is made, it might even change that very day.

Second, let’s take a minute to restore our confidence in our great country.

Canada is today in an enviable position, poised on the precipice of an era of exceptional growth and prosperity. Why do you think the U.S. is interested in acquiring us?

We have an abundance of critical minerals and fresh water, and an electricity grid that is more than 80 per cent green, meaning things we make here don’t carry a heavy carbon footprint.

We have a great education system and our student scores consistently track strongly in international comparisons, consistently ahead of the U.S.

We have freedom of speech and a society that values women and diversity in all its forms.

We are one of the few global centres to be considered a world leader in both manufacturing and technology, notably AI, which is powering our world-leading advanced manufacturing businesses, which make products the world can’t do without.

We are highly productive. What, you say? Canadian business productive? Yes. Canadian productivity stats reported to you do not reflect the productivity of Canadian business because they include workers who do not generate sales, such as government and not-for-profit workers. They reflect our overall demographics. If we exclude those workers from the calculation and just look at Canadian business you can see a strong and steady growth in productivity, up more than 50 per cent over the past 25 years. Canadian manufacturing productivity growth has outpaced that of the U.S. steadily over the past 15 years.

It is up to us to unlock Canada’s prosperity potential. Governments must reduce regulatory burdens to accelerate time to market, reduce personal and business income taxes to make us more globally attractive to talent and investment, and reduce heavy government bureaucracy. Our politicians seem to understand these imperatives given both parties are currently campaigning on some version of this strategy.

And finally, we need to focus on the facts as we enter negotiations with the U.S. to come up with winning solutions.

Let’s look at the automotive industry as an example.

The U.S., with by far the largest auto sector on the continent, employs 50 per cent more workers in the automotive industry than the next largest employer, Mexico. That means if production declines, it hurts American workers more than any other country. Way more.

The U.S. produces 9.9 million vehicles a year, 66 per cent of North America’s total. The population of the U.S. is 67 per cent of all North America.

Mexico produces 4 million vehicles a year, 26 per cent of North America’s total. The population of Mexico is 25 per cent of all North America.

Canada produces 1.2 million vehicles a year, 8 per cent of North America’s total. The population of Canada is 8 per cent of all North America.

Seems reasonable.

The automotive industry in North America is highly integrated. Parts often cross the border six or seven times in some form or another before pulling into your driveway as a new vehicle. We are all enormously reliant on each other. Mexican-built vehicles have 40 per cent U.S. content. If you shut down Mexican auto imports into the U.S., that is approximately US$72 billion of U.S. parts not being made and about 360,000 American workers out of work.

You can’t unscramble the eggs. The cost is enormous, the timeframes are lengthy and the payback is zero.

Shifting suppliers for a highly engineered part or sub-assembly cannot happen quickly. It takes 12 to 18 months and significant investment for the new supplier to tool up and do all the required testing and validation. Meantime, automakers are paying tariffs of 25 per cent. No way does that math work.

Shifting production saves nothing and brings no additional revenue. Where is the payback for business? Avoiding tariffs that could go away tomorrow? Or, sorry, was that yesterday?

Let’s look at vehicle assembly as an example. The U.S. administration certainly appears to want to make all the vehicles in North America in the U.S.

Notwithstanding that Canadians and Mexicans buy vehicles, too, and might just want to have some production, let’s just explore this idea.

The cost to build a plant to make 250,000 vehicles is US$2.5 billion to US$5 billion and takes two to three years to get to production. For five million vehicles that would be US$75 billion. Three years from now, vehicles are rolling off the line in the U.S. Three years and 294 days from now, a new administration will be taking office in the U.S. No reduced cost, no additional revenue, no payback.

Instead, let’s focus on how we can instead build and sell more vehicles globally. North America buys 19.2 million cars and the global market is 89 million, meaning 80 per cent of the world’s automotive sales are outside of North America — let’s target that.

What if Mexico made the highest labour content parts of the car, Canada made the most energy intensive parts of the car (remember our 80 per cent clean energy grid), the U.S. made the rest of the parts, and we split up vehicle production fairly (maybe by population). Tap into world leading North American technology to drive amazing innovation into those cars. Then we might just have the most innovative, leading edge, lowest cost and greenest cars in the world.

In the end it is collaboration that drives prosperity, not divisiveness. When did you ever strengthen a chain by breaking it?

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Let’s collaborate in North America and win together and then we will all be more prosperous.

In the meantime, Canada, let’s stay calm, let’s be confident, and above all let’s focus on facts.

Linda Hasenfratz is the executive chair of the board of Linamar Corp.

The Canadian dollar has had a tough year so far, but the worst could be over, according to economists.

Desjardins Group is scrapping its forecast that the loonie would sink to 67.56 cents U.S. this year and now predicts it will hold between 70.92 and 68.96 cents U.S. over the next three months.

Why the change? This year there has been a shift and suddenly the Federal Reserve is “out-doving” the Bank of Canada .

Recession risks are rising in the United States and the Fed on March 19 signalled that growth was becoming more of a concern, even referring to the impact of tariffs on inflation as “transitory.” 

Inflation, on the other hand, popped up frequently in remarks at the Bank of Canada’s meeting March 12.

“The Bank of Canada has turned cautious on the pace of rate cuts, while the Fed waits for hard data. Yield spreads may narrow, especially if the U.S. labour market cracks,” said Desjardins chief economist Jimmy Jean and foreign exchange strategist Mirza Shaheryar Baig.

Narrowing the spread between the interest rates of two central banks would bolster the Canadian dollar.

Meanwhile, the appeal of the U.S. dollar as a safe-haven has been rocked by the policy upheaval of Donald Trump’s new U.S. administration. 

“With a made-in-America recession lurking, the U.S. dollar is unlikely to hedge risky assets as it did in the past,” said Jean and Shaheryar Baig.

While the Canadian dollar has held fairly steady against the greenback, it has “depreciated significantly” against other currencies, which should help Canadian exporters find new markets outside North America, they said.

The loonie could appreciate even further if economic reforms to boost productivity now being proposed in the federal election bear fruit.

“Bringing more of Canada’s vast resources to international markets would also increase demand for the Canadian dollar,” said Desjardins.

Bank of America’s forecast for the Canadian dollar is even higher at 71.42 cents U.S., mainly because of their “sanguine view” on tariffs.

They expect the March equity flight from risk to reverse, oil to average US$66 and markets to reprice the Bank of Canada terminal rate higher as tariff tensions de-escalate.

“Tariffs do not need to fully unwind this year for USD/CAD to fall to our forecast,” said economist Carlos Capistran.

“A gradual shift toward constructive communication between U.S. and Canada on trade terms, making February 1 the peak tariffs panic moment for the year, should still drive USD/CAD meaningfully lower, in our view.”

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The budgets of seven of Canada’s 10 provinces are out and according to an estimate by National Bank of Canada the combined deficit adds up to $32 billion, double the forecasts for this fiscal year made a year ago.

“The budgetary tone, unsurprisingly, has shifted massively relative to prior guidance, tariff risks front and centre,” said National economist Warren Lovely.

The provinces are now focused on downside risks with tariff, slower growth and lower oil price scenarios hinting that the red ink could grow to about $40 billion this fiscal year, which would be a record shortfall for the group, he said.

Ontario’s budget will have to wait until after legislature resumes April 14, as will the federal budget which is on hold until after the April 28 election.

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This 65-year-old woman wants to keep working past 70 and wonders if that will affect her Canada Pension Plan and Old Age Security. FP Answers offers some suggestions on how to make the best use of her investments and savings.

McLister on mortgages

Want to learn more about mortgages? Mortgage strategist Robert McLister’s Financial Post column can help navigate the complex sector, from the latest trends to financing opportunities you won’t want to miss. Plus check his mortgage rate page for Canada’s lowest national mortgage rates, updated daily.

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Today’s Posthaste was written by Pamela Heaven, with additional reporting from Financial Post staff, The Canadian Press and Bloomberg.

Have a story idea, pitch, embargoed report, or a suggestion for this newsletter? Email us at  posthaste@postmedia.com .

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Politicians' promises are aimed at this key voter base, but the challenges have changed

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Watch economists, an asset manager and a VP of the EDC on how tariffs will impact the economy and election

For April 2025, only 295,982 bookings have been recorded, a 75.7% decline

As part of Postmedia’s How Canada Wins series, the Financial Post asked readers for their ideas about how to get Canada’s economy back on track. We thank everyone who submitted a suggestion and are publishing 50 of the most interesting ideas here.

Slash the red tape

Canada’s vast oil, gas, mineral and lumber reserves are goldmines. Slash the red tape: speed up LNG terminals, pipelines and rare earth mining while keeping the green energy transition in sight. No strangleholds on oil and gas due to overregulation. The outcome? More GDP, jobs and a stronger international trade position.

—Dave Suchanek, Oakville, Ont.

Cut middle-class income taxes

Middle class income taxes are totally prohibitive to enable savings, investments accumulation and financial security. They also inhibit motivation to establish new competitive businesses. All the potential middle class economic synergy is wasted. Family income taxes should be cut to less than 10 per cent.

—Jim Reid, Kamloops, B.C.

Get government out of the way

There are many suggestions in various media that “The federal government should do this, do that, etc.” I disagree. My suggestion: A return to classical liberalism with governments standing out of the way of the private sector and individuals except for the necessities of peace, order and good government, and the rule of law applied equally to all.

—Pierre-Pascal Gendron, Toronto

Create an environment that rewards risks

The government needs to support small to mid-size businesses and create an environment to take risks by increasing the capital gains exemption. There must be incentive to create a business and know you will be rewarded in the long term. When our current environment seems it’s better to work in the public sector rather than the private sector, our outlook is not good.

—Peter Hickey, London, Ont.

Beware of deficits

Read Richard Rohmer’s novel “Death by Deficit,” which brings to life what could happen when all the money runs out. The best people are in business, not politics. They can fire up our industrial engine if given the opportunity. With some limits, reduce corporate tax to zero. Tax the money they pay out for dividends, bonuses, salaries and end all subsidies.

—Dan Toppari, St. Catharines, Ont.

Make vacations within Canada tax free

Keep Canadians in Canada for vacations. Create an up-to-$1,000 tax refund for receipts from another province (it must be any province but your home province) to be claimed on 2025 tax return.

—Marney Rakidzioski, London, Ont.

Show Canada is open for business

Demonstrate in real terms that Canada is open for business. Encourage the development of all responsible resource and infrastructure projects. Ensure all regulatory or legal approval or rejection within a maximum period of two years. End the ability to stop viable projects by the use of delay tactics.

—Robert Kulhawy, Calgary, Alta.

Add economics to the curriculum

Add economics to the secondary school curriculum, so that the next generation understands concepts such as competitiveness, R&D, productivity and GDP, so they demand long-term solutions and make informed decisions when selecting their politicians.

—Renee Schindeler, Toronto

Focus on what the U.S. needs.

Canada ignores its comparative advantage in geography and resources. Focus on what the U.S. needs. Focus investments on resource extraction, processing and transport while dispersing our population to support. We can use policies such as employment taxes and credits to influence employment away from dense urban areas with subsidies on single family-friendly builds.

—Greg Wilbur, Salmon Arm, B.C.

Leverage our natural resources

Leverage Canada’s natural resources by reducing crippling restrictions on gas and oil development and processing. Get the government out of the way in this sector. Encourage brain trust growth with grants. Switch to cleaner energy through encouraging innovation, not punishing interference.

—John Bagnall, London, Ont.

Clear the way for pipelines

Expeditiously construct strategic oil and gas export pipelines and use domain powers under the Constitution to facilitate unfettered right-of-way for construction. Engage Canadian steel mills to produce and market orphaned steel and build the pipe ourselves. Repeal all federal legislation impairing the full scope of what is necessary to get export pipelines commissioned.

—Philip Lemke, Cochrane, Alta.

Bring our talented expats home

Implement targeted tax incentives for Canadian expatriates returning to build domestic enterprises, paired with AI-approved seed funding and time-limited tax relief for those startups in critical sectors. Balance fairness by extending parallel support measures to domestic entrepreneurs, ensuring inclusive economic growth, minimizing socioeconomic disparities, and fostering sustainable innovation and competitiveness.

—Eugene Ting, Toronto

Remove the shackles on free enterprise

When we enter international hockey tournaments, our most skilled players and management personnel are motivated by a single objective: to perform at the highest level. They receive complete freedom to pursue their goals within a well-defined framework. Give our economy the same freedom: Withdraw the shackles placed on free enterprise and watch Canada win!

—Harry Elliott, Edmonton

Refine oil in Canada

We export at Western Canada Select vs. West Texas Intermediate. The exchange differential alone is staggering. Build a West-East pipeline and refine oil in Canada for our benefit. Massively increase our LNG export capacity and seek out new markets. Why have we allowed this drain of incredible wealth?

—Michael Milne, Nepean, Ont.

Rebuild our institutional knowledge

Our companies and bureaucracy are full of young people with student debt who leapfrog from opportunity to opportunity, with little investment in their current job. A program encouraging companies to return to internal company-funded employee training, in exchange for committing to that company for a period, would help rebuild the institutional knowledge bank that has retired or is retiring.

—Carol Zuckerman, Kelowna, B.C.

Empower shoppers by identifying U.S. products

To assist Canadian consumers in selecting Canadian products or anything other than those items determined to be U.S.-made or of U.S. origin, apply a U.S. shelf sticker or flag to U.S. deemed items. A shelf sticker should make it easier for shoppers to choose Canadian or other amiable trading partners’ products.

—Rob Ellaway, West Vancouver, B.C.

Simplify the Income Tax Act

Simplify the Income Tax Act and ensure when a budget is released that the legislation is passed within six months. Otherwise, it should not be a budget item or so complex that the Department of Finance has not done their due diligence before introducing changes.

—Alan Wainer, Thornhill, Ont.

Make housing affordable, not an investment

Gradually change housing from a retirement investment to something affordable. Build housing at a rate that stabilizes current price and let rising income do the rest.

—Douglas Lee, North Vancouver, B.C.

Shop local and buy Canadian

We need to support our fellow Canadians. Shop local and buy from Canadian companies instead of ordering things online from places like Amazon. That gives Canadians a steady income.

—Margaret Lowrey, Calgary, Alta.

Embrace merit-based hiring again

We must evolve back to a merit-based approach to hiring and promotion and move away from a DEI framework which leads to a situation where decisions to hire or promote are not made based on optimizing outcomes but rather on race or colour. Canada cannot compete if we do not put our best people in the right roles.

—Mike Diamond, Toronto

Invest in education

One of Canada’s greatest natural resources we forget to mention is the contribution of a healthy, well-educated, population. We must continue to invest in our educational institutions at all levels. Not only are these the backbone of our democracy, but they are also the key to developing and attracting investments.

—Karina Rosenberg, Rawdon, Que.

Lower taxes to attract capital

The way to win is to attract capital and investment dollars to Canada. Lower corporate and individual income taxes to levels that make Canada the most attractive on that basis, and that capital will find a project to invest in. If our tax structure is not competitive, why would a corporate or individual choose to invest in such a regime?

—Paul Sarachman, Toronto

Launch a global charm offensive to open new markets

Canada needs a charm offensive like nothing we’ve ever mounted — prime ministers, premiers, diplomats, dealmakers activating markets beyond the U.S. International investment must become a national mission. Ireland did it — and became one of the world’s most successful economies. Compete at scale or be left behind. Let’s go!

—Stephen Lund, Toronto

Limit American ownership

Enact a law limiting American companies and ownership and exports to only 30 per cent, as part of a “Canada First” program.

—Bill McDonald, Vancouver, B.C.

Boost investment in new real estate builds

Encourage capital investment in real estate by not taxing capital gains on a sold building if gains are reinvested in new construction.

—Randall Shier, Kelowna, B.C.

Simplify the tax code

Reduce taxes and simplify the tax rules. Canadians pay way too much tax and the tax system is way too complicated. Most taxpayers should not have to hire a specialist to complete their tax filings. The bureaucracy necessary to administer the tax system (CRA) is out of control and dysfunctional and is another drag on productivity and prosperity.

—Sue McIntyre, Toronto

Cut capital gains on Canadian investments

Remove capital gains tax for investments made on select Canadian companies, equities, bonds and projects and allow 100 per cent deductions against income for select Canadian charities.

—Peter Muselius, Goderich, Ont.

Cut regulations and the public sector

The damage to Canadian identity over the last decade can’t be exaggerated and no economic recovery will be sustainable unless we establish national pride in being Canadian. Pride in our inefficient and unproductive ways is misguided and embarrassing. The road to recovery starts with severe public sector and regulation reductions.

—Karl Ullrich, Victoria, B.C.

Eliminate the GST on Canadian-made products

Take the GST off goods that are made in Canada. Not assembled in, but actually made in Canada, from the producer to the wholesalers to the retailer to the consumer, all throughout the chain. Encourage people to buy Canadian-made goods.

—Sherry Wallace, Edmonton 

Track our ‘Buy Canadian’ spending

Buy Canadian wherever possible. How to monitor this: A simple website for Canadians to anonymously submit the dollar amount of purchases they consciously switch to buy Canadian vs. American. Canadians can see how they collectively support our country in real dollars and cents. It would be inspirational to see exactly how much difference an individual makes.

—Barbara Mathews, Vancouver, B.C.

Use flow-through shares to supercharge the tech sector

A made-in-Canada solution to supercharge Canada’s tech sector. For 71 years, flow-through shares (FTS) have helped fund Canada’s mining sector plus oil and gas and renewable energy. In 2024, FTS activity was the best in five years. Extend this investment incentive to our high value, high-tech companies.

—David Perry, Ottawa

Free trade between provinces — no ifs, ands or buts

It’s time to enact once and for all free trade among provinces. This government or the next should give the provinces a few months’ notice to prepare an historic convention whose mission will be free trade in Canada, no ifs, ands or buts. This is what our economy needs, this is what the people want. It’s about time!

—John Dawe, Toronto

Rebuild our military

Canada should begin a major multi-generational defence asset manufacturing investment program. We should be designing and building our own jets, helicopters and ships to rebuild our military capabilities. This will give Canadians a much-needed boost in self-assuredness and will heighten national pride and preparedness.

—Dean Geiger, Bowmanville, Ont.

Hold ‘innovation auctions’ to surface and fund great ideas

Innovation auctions. Individuals or small businesses are coached to pitch their innovation ideas a few times a year to bidders. Innovation is driven by smaller, decentralized groups of individuals spurring the economy, and bidding entities can focus their R&D dollars on getting purchased innovative ideas past the finish line and exported.

—Michel S., Ottawa

Build up small- and medium-sized businesses

A country that can withstand economic hardship must be based on a foundation of small and medium enterprises. The government must help the proven innovators to deliver results and create an ecosystem for the high-tech industry. Strong small and medium enterprises must be the backbone and the bricks of a solid house.

—Diego Lai, Markham, Ont.

Leverage our global connections

To quote one of our, albeit slightly tarnished, national treasures — Wayne Gretzky — the key to strengthening Canada’s economy is to “skate to where the puck is going.” Lean into our diversity. Leverage those global connections. Be greater than the sum of our tribes.

—Randy Gillespie, Conception Bay South, Nfld.

Incentivize investment in high-growth sectors

Introduce huge tax incentives and investment credits for startups in high-growth sectors like healthcare, technology, biotech, agri-tech, pharma, advanced manufacturing, and financial services. Interprovincial trade barriers removed immediately, under emergency national security legislation if needed. Introduce tax write-offs for capital equipment investment with bonus for Canadian capital goods.

—Steve Mitchell, Toronto

Build and export our LNG expertise

Facilitate a global shift away from coal-fired power generation. Canada could offer a viable alternative by converting existing coal-burning power plants worldwide to use our liquefied natural gas (LNG) for electricity production. We could incentivize this transition by supplying LNG and providing technical assistance to help other nations build the necessary LNG infrastructure.

—Danny Keyes, Comox, B.C.

Teach the merits of free markets

Mandate economics for every high school student. It must be a podcast as many teachers will oppose, or do not understand either. This will include how free markets lead to prosperity and accountability.

—Herb Pinder, Saskatoon, Sask.

End the bureaucratic nightmare facing businesses

Roll back tons of red tape. Make it easy to do business in Canada instead of the bureaucratic nightmare it has become. This is particularly important regarding energy. That said, I’m not suggesting a free for all, there needs to be regulations, but they need to be simple, easy to understand and easy to administer.

—Peter Symons, Toronto

Cut taxes for low- and middle-income families

Cut income tax significantly for middle- and lower-income Canadians. Workers spend what they earn. We need people to spend money in the economy and the velocity of spending increases when people buy goods and services and, in turn, that money is spent again. The same money in our government coffers does not turn as often or as efficiently.

—Jay Gotteiner, Montreal

Help SMEs access capital

I work selling small businesses and it is almost impossible to get funding for these deals. The banks want nothing to do with them unless the loan-to-value ratio is so high they have little risk. Small and medium sized businesses employ many Canadians, and wealth is built here for normal men and women. We need access to capital.

—Brad Crompton, Toronto

Stay home, snowbirds

If snowbirds would just defer for one winter or cut their usual time in the U.S. by 50 per cent, it would send a huge message to Florida, Arizona and the rest of the U.S. — and keep billions of dollars in Canada.

—Garth McIver, Vancouver, B.C.

Reset the Canadian government

The only way to reset the Canadian economy is to reset the Canadian government. A Democratic government who trusts its citizens to act responsibly and in capitalist principles; private property, free markets, competition, profit motive, voluntary exchange, innovation and efficiency and capital growth

—David Milovac, Oakville, Ont.

Fill the global demand for critical minerals

For geopolitical reasons, there is a demand for critical minerals not processed in China. Canada can fill this demand. In doing so, Canada can increase its value added by processing a larger share of Canadian-extracted minerals domestically, thereby capturing a greater share of global value chains.

—Ben Doran, Ottawa

Encourage private enterprise

We do not encourage enough private enterprise. We raise people to work in jobs that only a few parties own. People should be learning how to run businesses and create their own. Design and innovation are paramount to creating new wealth. Individual accomplishment with healthy competition drives us forward, not stagnancy.

—Barbara Dodge, Toronto

Use the Bank of Canada to combat poverty

Former NDP leader Tommy Douglas reminded Canadians that we used the Bank of Canada to fund WWII spending, and we can use it also to combat poverty, unemployment and social injustice. A Canada-first national plan for green infrastructure, social services and full employment can prevail over aggressive U.S. tariffs.

—Larry Kazdan, Vancouver, B.C.

• The issues small businesses are grappling with today
• Seven big ideas to help Canada win
• How Canada Wins: A blueprint for a prosperous nation

Invest in Hollywood North

Canada must seize this moment to outcompete Hollywood and become the premier destination for film and TV production. We need stronger federal and provincial funding, tax incentives, and a global distribution strategy to elevate our creative sector. By investing now, we secure our place as the hallmark of entertainment and information.

—Kaberi Dutta Chatterjee, Mississauga, Ont.

Push pensions to invest at home

Encourage our humongous pension plans (CPP, Ontario Teachers, OMERS) to invest in Canadian mining, infrastructure, etc. projects versus overseas (including the U.S.).

—L.M. Chow, Ottawa

Make it easier to Buy Canadian

We need to continue to better inform folks across the country of Canadian options to U.S. products, and if not Canadian, at least a non-U.S. alternative. We especially need stats showing how our fellow Canadians are moving in a non-U.S. direction. We will all be encouraged to keep up the fight if we are assured that we are not alone.

—Michael Lowe, Ottawa

• Email: jswitzer@postmedia.com

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