Years ago, this author happened to be in Brussels, Belgium for a number of business meetings at the headquarters of the European Union (EU). It was an education, and not a very positive one. After dealing with various Canadian governments for years, I thought I knew what excessive government red tape was all about. I was wrong. The EU was unbelievably bogged down in every sort of red tape imaginable – excessive regulations, all kinds of costly fees that paid for useless government, rules that contradicted each other and layers upon layers of bureaucrats to administer this massive mess. It wasn’t surprising that European countries had for years been called “sclerotic” for their inability to get anything done and their economies that were sluggish on an ongoing basis.
Why is this relevant? Because apparently Prime Minister Mark Carney has floated the notion of Canada becoming a member state of the EU. A number of recent public opinion polls have shown that a sizeable percentage of Canadians seem to think this is a good idea, or at least worth considering. One can only assume that the Canadians in favour of EU membership haven’t a clue about what that would entail.
For starters, the current Treaty of the EU states that non-European countries cannot be part of the EU. That means us, Canadians! Do we really believe that all 27 countries that are EU members would change one of their fundamental rules because of little old Canada? Doubt it. The fact that some Canadian public polling firms would even ask this question of Canadians when it is clearly a non-starter is dubious from the get-go.
Even if it were a possibility, Canada would be well-advised to stay far away from any economic union with the EU because their ridiculous number of rules and regulations would bury Canada even more than our current over-regulation does. If Canadian businesses think Canada has excessive amounts of red tape now, they ain’t seen nothing yet if we ever join the EU. As well, in a sort of equalization program that bears some minor resemblance to Canada’s, where rich provinces like Alberta pay more into a system which rewards the poorer provinces, Canada would in all likelihood pay into the EU far more than it would ever receive in benefits. Geography alone means that Canada is far away from the seat of EU power, which would also diminish Canada’s influence as a smaller member.
Another consideration is that Europe’s borders are even more open to immigration than Canada’s, which is hard to believe after the influx of people into Canada in recent years. If Canada were to join the EU, the floodgates would open even more. Anyone paying attention to the massive migrant immigration problems Europe has been having of late needs to know that our immigration chaos would be even worse if we were an EU member in which citizens can move freely within the EU without a visa.
So given all of these immense drawbacks, why has the issue of Canadian membership in the EU even become an issue? Seems that is because of Carney’s love for Europe, which has been demonstrated on many occasions. Carney has actually stated that he considers himself to be a European, as he has declared on the record with European colleagues despite it not being true. And most of his international trips to date have involved European destinations where it seems he is most comfortable.
Also, this whole thrust has been driven by Carney’s constant attempts to position himself as the anti-Trump, which is the main reason he was able to win last year’s election with a minority government. As Carney claims he is trying to diversify Canada’s trade with countries other than the U.S. – something that has been attempted by many Liberal governments over the years with zero success – the EU could be viewed as an attractive alternative. But only by those who haven’t a clue about how these trade relationships actually work.
Canada’s current exports to the EU amount to about eight per cent. Exports to the U.S. are 77 per cent. Past attempts to diversify trade away from the US have barely moved the needle by a percentage point or so. This attempt by Carney will be no different, although he will probably claim that it will. The Canadian and U.S. economies have been so interconnected for so long that those ties will be very difficult to unwind. Also, folks that believe we can export competitively to markets far away, with much greater transportation costs and costly red tape to include things like more languages on product labels are dreaming.
My trip to Brussels back in the day continues to haunt me. These days, it’s clear that Canadians who think we should ally ourselves with the EU need to learn some facts. And maybe the Liberal government can start being more honest with Canadians too, instead of proposing things like EU membership that are preposterous.
She has published numerous articles in journals, magazines & other media on issues such as free trade, finance, entrepreneurship & women business owners. Ms. Swift is a past President of the Empire Club of Canada, a former Director of the CD Howe Institute, the Canadian Youth Business Foundation, SOS Children’s Villages, past President of the International Small Business Congress and current Director of the Fraser Institute. She was cited in 2003 & 2012 as one of the most powerful women in Canada by the Women’s Executive Network & is a recipient of the Queen’s Silver & Gold Jubilee medals.
