An economist says a fresh perspective is needed to navigate future trade challenges between Canada and the United States, while commenting on former prime minister Stephen Harper’s advice to the Liberals ahead of the deadline to reach an agreement on August 1.This comes after Harper said that he gave Prime Minister Mark Carney’s team advice on a trade deal with US. The advice included looking outside the US for trade agreements.Moshe Lander, an economics professor at Concordia University, told the Western Standard Tuesday Harper’s opinion isn’t more “insightful” than what we might hear from any other former prime minister."He's right," Lander said.The economist noted that Canada has made consistent progress in trade negotiations with the US since the 1960s, and current leaders — on both sides of the border — may not fully grasp what it would mean to move backward in that relationship..Canada's inflation rate rose to 1.9% in June as prices of cars, clothes rise.“So, I think that the real insight is going to come from somebody out there who says: Hey, in the past, when we took a step backward, this is how we overcame it, to take two steps forward in the future,” he said.According to Lander, real insight may have to come from someone outside politics who understands how to respond when things regress — and how to turn that into progress.He added that while political figures often offer commentary on cross-border ties, few have the direct experience necessary to guide the two countries through a significant downturn in economic cooperation.“I said 30 years ago that Canada should be pursuing more free trade agreements than just the US, not because I thought that the US was a threat to Canadian sovereignty or security, but because the more free trade partners you have, the better your quality of life is,” Lander said.“The EU understands that, which is why they've pursued the expansion of its membership from what was originally six countries to now 30 countries.”.Albertans seeing bigger paycheques as tax cuts come into effect.When asked about whether a Canada-EU trade deal would be as powerful and economically impactful as a free trade deal with the US, Lander said “no,” citing geography, culture, language, customs, and the scale of the US economy.“They all play factors beyond just the size of the economy. So, given that — as much as Canadians like to think that we're different than Americans — we're a lot more similar than we like to admit, and because we have common language, culture, customs, we celebrate similar holidays. We have similar religious origins, at least in Christianity,” Lander said.“They're right next to us, and they’re such a huge economy, it doesn't make sense to trade with anybody else as much as we trade with the Americans.”Lander agrees with Carney’s assertion that no deal is better than a bad one, adding that August 1 is “just a made-up date” set by US President Donald Trump’s administration.“So, I think that there's always the ability to extend the deadline, and we've seen that happen already over the last six months — that by this date, if you haven't accomplished some particular objective, then I'm imposing tariffs — and the next thing you know, it's, well, I'm extending it a week or a month. I mean, that's where the August 1 deadline came from,” Lander added..Housing starts continue to grow with Alberta, the Prairies leading Canada: CMHC report.Meanwhile, Mount Royal University political science professor Lori Williams says this time could be different, citing deals with Japan, the EU, and the UK, which could potentially put pressure on Canada.“We're getting mixed messages about what's actually in the agreements. And essentially, they are agreements in principle. They're agreements to continue negotiations around or within certain parameters,” Williams said. “It does put more pressure, nevertheless, on Canada to try to find or achieve a deal. And of course, because that deadline is coming up, some are concerned that maybe this time the deadline will not be extended and things will get tougher for those industries that aren't currently protected by the Canada-US-Mexico trade agreement.”Williams says that Trump is unpredictable, and therefore, reaching a trade deal on Thursday remains unpredictable.American-Canadian politician and former cabinet minister in the Alberta government, Ted Morton, says Harper’s insight into the trade war is much needed, citing his experience in economics and international trade deals.Harper, Canada’s 22nd prime minister, led the country from 2006 to 2015 and is best known for uniting the political right into the modern Conservative Party. He guided Canada through the global financial crisis and expanded free trade. After politics, he became a global consultant, author, and speaker..Advocates say a no-fault insurance model in Alberta could take away victims’ rights, put a strain on the healthcare system
