The following piece is based on remarks delivered by former career diplomat and Policy Contributing Writer Colin Robertson to the Progressive Senate Group in Ottawa on September 28, 2026.

By Colin Robertson

Canada cannot control Washington. But it can remove the obstacles to prosperity we have created ourselves. Doing so requires action from every level of government.

I returned from Banff’s Global Business Forum persuaded by McKinsey’s Chris Bradley that raising real GDP per person remains a central test of economic progress. His recent research reinforces the case for investment and renewal.

But averages conceal hardship.

Governments must help share prosperity through progressive taxation, effective safety nets and access to opportunity. They must uphold health and safety standards while eliminating unnecessary regulatory burdens.

Canada’s productivity gap is substantial. The OECD’s 2025 survey puts output per hour in 2023 at US$74.7, against $97 in the United States, adjusted for purchasing power: a 23 per cent shortfall. Better equipment, management, skills and technology can help close it.

Six priorities follow.

First, deal with the United States as it is. Economic integration gives both countries powerful reasons to cooperate. It does not guarantee reasonable American policy.

The United States bought 71.7 per cent of Canadian merchandise exports in 2025. Protecting access remains indispensable, but we must recognize that America has changed.

As former ambassador Kirsten Hillman warned at Banff, businesses should not count on the relationship returning to normal. American scepticism about economic integration predates Donald Trump. A change of administration offers no guarantee of restoring the old bargain. Canadians must, in Hillman’s words, “be able to count on our own resilience.”

Our objective should be a dependable North American production platform: fewer tariffs, workable rules and investment certainty. Negotiate firmly, use leverage carefully and judge concessions by their return. Cultivate American customers, employers, governors and legislators who understand their stake in Canadian success. Consult closely with Mexico.

Parliamentarians should take every opportunity to visit Washington to cultivate American counterparts on both sides of the aisle. In my experience, these personal relationships always produce valuable insights, intelligence and a better understanding of our shared interests.

Second, make diversification commercial. Agreements open doors; firms need help crossing the threshold.

Global Affairs Canada reports 59 per cent utilization of CETA tariff preferences in 2024. Its July 2026 Canada–France study identifies shipping through third countries and difficulties meeting direct-transport requirements as obstacles.

Smaller exporters need financing, market intelligence, certification and practical customs assistance. Measure success in repeat sales.

Third, dismantle our domestic barriers. A decade after the Senate’s Tear Down These Walls: Dismantling Canada’s Internal Trade Barriers, the substantial economic prize remains unrealized. A September 2026 IMF working paper estimates that removing all internal trade barriers unrelated to distance could raise real GDP by 6.8 per cent. This is a modelled potential gain, not an immediate dividend. Services offer the largest gains.

The Commons Agriculture Committee’s 2025 study examined overlapping federal and provincial plastics reporting. Shared reporting and published service standards offer practical remedies for duplication and uncertainty.

Premiers must lead in opening provincial markets and recognizing equivalent standards. Provinces govern most employment standards and workplace safety; environmental protection is shared. Municipalities control zoning, permits and servicing. Ottawa retains responsibility for labour relations in ports and interprovincial railways. Each must act within its jurisdiction and coordinate with the others.

Fourth, invest in productive capacity and reliable transport. At Banff, potash and canola producers stressed Vancouver’s bottlenecks and work stoppages.

CN explains that trains serving North Shore export terminals must wait while the Second Narrows rail bridge lifts for ships. Better rail staging and scheduling matter. Ottawa’s July 2026 Gateway Strategy also identifies scarce industrial land as an obstacle to modern bulk terminals serving grain, potash and canola oil exporters.

The federal inquiry into West Coast port disputes records that more than 17 container ships were diverted — many to American ports — during the 2023 strike. It warns that diverted business may not return. Employers, unions and governments share responsibility for reliability.

Mining needs connecting infrastructure. Federal support conditionally approved for Wicheeda’s rare-earth project would advance a 60-kilometre power line and design upgrades to a 43-kilometre access road. Resources underground need infrastructure above ground.

Fifth, build inclusion into growth. The newly approved LNG Canada expansion in Kitimat offers a timely example. Five First Nations have the option to invest up to $1 billion for a majority stake in the entity that would own its new LNG storage tank. Indigenous participation can mean long-term ownership and returns. Making such opportunities meaningful requires access to capital and independent advice, respect for rights and properly funded consultation with agreed timelines.

But finding consensus does not mean unanimity and reasonable consultation should be measured in months, not decades.

Use existing talent better. The 2021 Census found overqualification among immigrants with foreign degrees at 25.8 per cent, against 11.8 per cent among immigrants educated in Canada. Credential recognition and bridging programmes belong alongside apprenticeships, childcare and housing in a productivity strategy. Workers displaced by tariffs or technology need adjustment assistance tied to actual jobs and local investment.

Sixth, governments must deliver and businesses must invest. The C.D. Howe Institute estimated Canadian business investment per available worker in 2025 at 70 cents for every dollar across the OECD and 55 cents compared with the United States, adjusted for purchasing power.

The same study puts Canadian machinery and equipment investment per available worker in 2024 at just 41 cents per American dollar. Manufacturers need modern tools to compete; workers need training to use them.

Public support should remove identifiable constraints, attract additional private investment and carry conditions, deadlines and an exit. We cannot subsidize every industry calling itself strategic.

Federal, provincial, territorial, municipal and Indigenous governments must agree on responsibilities for project approvals, funding and delivery, with clear deadlines. Businesses must turn improved conditions into investment in equipment, technology and training.

Asked by the Progressive Senate Group who should scrutinize sweeping legislation and project delivery, my answer was legislators. The House of Commons, Senate and provincial legislatures must examine omnibus bills carefully and demand regular public reporting: what was built, what it cost, who benefited and what changed.

Realism demands that we assess our interests, capabilities and limits. Economic strength gives Canada more choices and greater capacity to act on its values.

Passing responsibility around the federation will build nothing. Canadian prosperity requires action from every level of government.

We are not simply managing our inheritance. We are building a nation.

Contributing Writer Colin Robertson,C.M., C.D, a former career diplomat, is a fellow and host of the Global Exchange podcast with the Canadian Global Affairs Institute in Ottawa.