In electing their new Parliament — and a minority government led by prime minister-designate Mark Carney — Canadians reflected on the kind of country we want to be, and how we want our leaders to behave.
The verdict was far from unanimous.
Canada has deep political divisions, fuelled by sluggish economic performance, bitter politics and a digital media ecosystem that rewards rage more than respect or reason.
But while we don’t all vote the same way, most Canadians agree on many things.
Based on their platforms, both the Liberals and the Conservatives listened well.
Both acknowledged that the threat from U.S. President Donald Trump isn’t just a wake-up call — it’s a call to action:
• To build our economy by supporting Canadian job-creators, entrepreneurs and high-potential businesses, and making our country a destination for international investment.
• To open up new markets for our businesses, both inside and outside our country, practising free trade both abroad and at home.
• To speed up approvals for major resource projects and build east-west infrastructure to get our products to new markets overseas.
• To make it easier for Canadians — particularly young adults — to afford a home.
• To fix our immigration system, which remains a foundation for our future growth.
• To defend our sovereignty, strengthen our security, and fulfil commitments to our allies.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s Liberal Party won the federal election, but a historian said the issues swirling around the nation’s southern neighbor persist. (AP video: Mike Householder / April 29, 2025)
While partisans exaggerate and amplify their differences, both major parties showed they understand the problems, even if they offered different prescriptions.
Carney displayed a sober, can-do pragmatism that played well with Canadians, and a welcome disinclination to divide us.
He must now respond to a deep desire for change — not just in style, but also in substance.
The way to be better: make productivity a priority
The new PM recognized both the mistakes of his predecessor and the complacency that has resulted in a decades-long decline in Canada’s productivity relative to other advanced economies.
His three-word message — fight, protect, build — signalled that while the top postelection priority will be negotiating a new economic relationship with the U.S., Canada’s overreliance on our largest market must end.
While he acknowledged affordability concerns by offering up a personal income tax cut, and promised short-term spending to cushion workers and businesses from the Trump trade war, he also showed he understands that enhancing competitiveness depends not on subsidizing consumption but on making — and attracting — the right investments.
On this, he must develop a plan that goes beyond his platform.
Here are three good places to start:
Improve government productivity: After sending a signal with a smaller cabinet, Carney must act decisively to reduce the capital and labour that government crowds out of the productive economy.
This doesn’t mean a Musk-style slash-and-burn, but a comprehensive program review that refocuses government spending on priorities such as infrastructure, public R&D funding, accessible public services and health care — all essential to national competitiveness.
Incentivize private sector productivity: Carney’s government must spur private investment in technology, operational efficiency and intellectual property; ensure tax competitiveness with the U.S.; ease the regulatory burden that adds cost, time and risk for investors; and work with the provinces to better align post-secondary and skills development programs with emerging workforce needs.
Use policy and procurement to help businesses scale up: Growth comes from innovation, which comes from intellectual property.
We must incentivize and protect IP generated in Canada with policies and trade agreements; and improve access to capital; and use the government’s massive procurement. For a growing business, a contract is better than a grant. Government must make it easier for homegrown, high-growth companies to compete and win.
The way to behave — strength through unity
Carney also seems to recognize that in a diverse federation, progress is not possible without unity.
He jettisoned some of former prime minister Justin Trudeau’s most divisive policies, but preserved his predecessor’s co-operative approach with Doug Ford and the other premiers on the white-hot Canada-U.S. file. In the leaders’ debates, he proved an elusive target by avoiding partisan scrapping.
He must build on this instinct to deal with a litany of concerns:Â Western Canadians feel alienated; business leaders feel ignored; entrepreneurs and investors feel unwelcome; young people feel financial security is out of reach; and workers feel anxious and unprepared for the future.
Carney could do worse than reach out to his main rival, Pierre Poilievre, and even adopt some of the better Conservative policy proposals, such as deferring capital gains taxes when the proceeds are reinvested in Canadian companies.
Finally, the PM has an opportunity to set a new tone for our place in the world.
With Trump leading the U.S. toward isolation, authoritarianism and likely economic decline, Canada must join other nations in stepping up to lead.
This means a continued commitment to multilateralism, collective security, foreign aid, climate action, and the defence of democracy along with free trade and open markets.Â
To break from the past, however, Carney must strive for less soaring rhetoric and more deliberate, disciplined action.
Carney has been called to lead. Now, he must heed the call for change.
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