Skip to main content

“I am a Canadian, free to speak without fear, free to worship in my own way, free to stand for what I think right, free to oppose what I believe wrong, or free to choose those who shall govern my country. This heritage of freedom I pledge to uphold for myself and all mankind.” ~~ John G. Diefenbaker

PECKFORD -- Canada’s Laggard Performance


Canada will be the last of the three countries to ratify the North America Free Trade Agreement. 

Mexico and the U.S. have approved the deal, with the President of the US signing Wednesday, after having passed the Congress a couple of weeks ago.

Canada has just introduced the Agreement to Parliament. We are not known for being ‘quick off the mark, are we?

On a number of occasions, I have highlighted Canada’s poor performance compared to other countries on ease of doing business. I have used the World Bank Study that showed for last year Canada coming in a dismal 23. In two areas in particular we did really bad; 124th for the time it takes to get an electrical permit, and 64th in the time it takes to get a construction permit.

Now comes another study from the CEO World Magazine (Best Countries to Invest in Or Do Business) that shows Canada coming 34th out of 67 countries studied.

Malaysia was in top spot followed by Poland and the Philippines. Here is how the study was conducted:

‘The rankings were based on 11 different factors including corruption, freedom (personal, trade, and monetary), workforce, investor protection, infrastructure, taxes, quality of life, red tape, and technological readiness. Each category was equally weighted.’

Here are some other countries that are ahead of us according to this study: Thailand, Uruguay, Chile, Bulgaria, Slovenia and Vietnam.

Of course, almost all the western European countries are ahead of Canada --- and not surprisingly the two other members of the North American Free Trade Agreement, Mexico and the USA, are also ahead of us. 



In 1972, Brian Peckford was first elected, as a Progressive Conservative, to the Newfoundland Labrador House of Assembly -- he became Premier at the age of 36, holding the leadership of his party and government for ten years (1979 to 1989).

Since leaving politics, early in 1989, Peckford has conducted public inquires for the governments of British Columbia and Canada, has served on numerous Boards including the CBC, and has been active in public affairs. 

In 1993 he and his wife Carol moved across country to British Columbia, and now live in Parksville, on Vancouver Island.



Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The NDP is destroying BC's softwood industry as 100 Mile House mill shuts down and jobs vanish

No more than a few days after the province hosted its much-touted summit to discuss the continuing impact of U.S. softwood tariffs, and with Statistics Canada reporting another decline in BC’s softwood production, the axe has fallen on West Fraser Timber’s 100 Mile House mill. Lorne Doerkson, MLA for Cariboo–Chilcotin , says the devastation now hitting the South Cariboo is what happens when government ignores every warning sign coming from the forest sector. “One hundred and sixty-five people in 100 Mile House just lost their jobs,” said Doerkson. “That’s 165 families wondering how they’ll pay their bills and whether they can stay in their own community. The ripple effect will hit every business on main street, from the gas stations and restaurants to the grocery stores.” “The Minister’s thoughts and prayers aren’t enough for those families facing unimaginable hardship. It’s time this minister did his job and not another photo op,” said Doerkson. “The Minister thinks the ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Premier’s Office Acknowledges Richmond Residents Affected by Cowichan Land Claim Face Issues on “Mortgages, Property Sales”

“The Premier’s Office is secretly sending letters to my constituents behind my back. If the NDP were truly committed to transparency and supporting residents, they would have proactively engaged with owners years ago, not rushed out last-minute letters to cover their tracks.” ~~ Steve Kooner, Conservative MLA for Richmond-Queensborough and Opposition Critic for Attorney General Steve Kooner, Conservative MLA for Richmond-Queensborough and Opposition Critic for Attorney General, is criticising Premier David Eby and the NDP provincial government for secretly delivering non-committal, last-minute letters to Richmond residents affected by the Cowichan Tribes land claim. For over six years the NDP misled British Columbians on the implications of indigenous land claims. Premier Eby is now quietly sending staff to conduct damage control following public fallout from his 2019 strategic directive for government lawyers not to argue extinguishment of aboriginal title, even over p...
Post a Comment
Read more

Kamloops woman’s cancer test cancelled due to Interior Health mandates for OB/GYNs (iNFO News)

A Kamloops woman’s cancer screening appointment was considered urgent by her doctors and scheduled within weeks, but it was postponed indefinitely when Interior Health ordered her gynecologist take that day’s on-call shift. Troylana Manson now waits with the mystery of whether she might have cancer amid a staffing crisis for women’s health care specialists in Kamloops. “I was happy to have that appointment in December so we could rule this out, but now it’s thrown in the air again. People in Kamloops, certainly people in positions of power, need to realize what Interior Health is doing”  ... CLICK HERE for the full story
Post a Comment
Read more

Labels

Show more