NDP Leader Tom Mulcair says Canada needs to abandon its 鈥渞ip and ship鈥� approach to natural resource development if it wants to create jobs, protect the environment and improve energy security for future generations.
In a year-end interview with CTV鈥檚 Question Period that aired Sunday, Mulcair was asked about his party鈥檚 job-creation plan, particularly what it would do to revive the battered manufacturing industry.
Mulcair said past mistakes have 鈥渉ollowed out鈥� Canada鈥檚 manufacturing sector and, should his party win power in 2015, he said they will look at every issue, including jobs, from three angles: economically, socially and environmentally.
鈥淲e understand that our resources are a blessing and we can continue to develop them,鈥� Mulcair said.
鈥淏ut for heaven鈥檚 sake, instead of shipping them raw to the U.S., this rip and ship approach that the Liberals and the Conservatives are in favour of, the NDP says why not go from West to East? You create more value-added jobs in Canada, you get a better price for the producing provinces because there鈥檚 better royalties there as well, and you鈥檙e ensuring you鈥檙e taking care of Canada鈥檚 energy security for the future.鈥�
As an example, Mulcair referenced Quebec鈥檚 decision to ban the export of raw logs in Quebec, which spurred a furniture manufacturing industry in the province.
Shipping natural resources away is a lost opportunity, and the focus should be on developing new technologies for energy development in Canada, he says.
鈥淭here鈥檚 a common-sense role for government in these kinds of things, because we should have a balanced economy,鈥� Mulcair said.
鈥淲e used to ship the logs to the States and buy back the furniture they would make. Now we鈥檙e doing that with energy.鈥�
Some manufacturing jobs 鈥榳ill never return鈥�
Meanwhile, when asked about how he would revive Canada鈥檚 manufacturing sector, Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau said Canadians must accept that many manufacturing jobs that have been lost are gone for good.
鈥淚 think understanding that we鈥檙e in a world where some manufacturing jobs that have left Canada and will never return means we have to be investing in higher order, whether its pharmaceuticals or aerospace or the tech cluster,鈥� Trudeau told Question Period in his own year-end interview.
鈥淭here is an opportunity for great jobs, we just have to make sure that our education system and our skills training and our professional development programs are at the level of being able to create workers for those jobs.鈥�
With the Conservatives not only promising balanced books but a surplus in 2015, Trudeau was asked what a Liberal government would do without a deficit to pay down.
Trudeau said 鈥渢here鈥檚 an awful lot of things that we need to do,鈥� but investments in education, infrastructure, skills training and innovations to boost competitiveness will lead to 鈥渂etter outcomes鈥� for Canadians.
鈥淢y focus as it has been since the beginning of my leadership campaign is making sure that Canadians have opportunities to excel, to benefit from the growth that Canada is currently going through,鈥� Trudeau said.
While the NDP leader has vowed to raise corporate tax rates, Trudeau said he would not threaten businesses hoarding cash with a tax hike if they don鈥檛 invest in job creation or technological innovation.
鈥淚 think corporate tax rates are about where they should be,鈥� he said.
鈥淐ertainly if we get into a position of surplus or balanced books there is a tremendous opportunity to make sure that everyone gets to benefit, not just a few, and that will be very much our focus. But being competitive on the world stage is very important for our businesses.鈥�
