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Yet the EU, composed of 27 countries, each with its own seat at the United Nations, is in many ways a more functional federation than Canada, which tends to unite only around its national hockey teams, provided a smattering of players from Quebec and the Prairies survive the selection process.
The EU is in many ways a more functional federation than Canada
The EU likes its rules, but executives can at least be confident that they will be able to do business anywhere in the union once all the approvals are in place. That’s not the case in Canada, where provinces insist on the right to protect local heroes from competition and allow various trade and professional associations to regulate the supply of services.
COVID-19 has caused some of the political rigidity to loosen. Ontario Premier Doug Ford, a sworn enemy of the carbon tax, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s signature environmental policy, has tried hard to get along with the federal government during the crisis.
Paul, who, it must be said, is still new to politics, sees an opening to get things done, provided those of us who elect these people keep the pressure on. The COVID-19 crisis has shown that politicians and bureaucracies can move in real time when they aren’t fixated by polling data (politicians) or worried about making a mistake that will cost them a promotion (bureaucrats). Traditional excuses for avoiding risk no longer apply.
“People are less tolerant of these jurisdictional excuses for inaction,” Pal, who has degrees in public affairs from Princeton University and law from the University of Ottawa,said this week on pollster David Herle’s podcast, the Herle Burly. “The federation was designed to make us stronger. It was never intended to be a barrier to urgent action. The fact that it has been used in that way is a really grave threat to the federation.”
