Former prime minister Kim Campbell was once quoted as saying “an election is no time to discuss serious issues.” But with global trade being redefined, sovereignty threats against Canada and the urgent need to make our economy productive in order to compete, discussing these serious issues is non-negotiable.

As Kevin Carmichael notes, “Trump’s tariff-first trade policy and apparent desire to extend U.S. sovereignty to the northern part of the hemisphere has cracked the foundation on which Canada’s economy is built, crushing business and consumer confidence. Border taxes at the scale Trump imagines would cause a recession, while the incoherence of his objectives and the inconsistency of his demands might be even more destructive.”

The Logic is starting a series focused on contributing to the debate with solutions. “In a time of uncertainty with little precedent, a more productive Canada will be a more resilient Canada,” it says. “The polycrisis has moved beyond surviving pandemics, containing inflation, adapting to climate change and avoiding war — Trump’s return to the White House has made achieving anti-fragility existential. A Royal Commission that could sort through all of this would be ideal, but we don’t have the time. To remain safely independent, Canada will have to follow former NHL coach Ted Nolan’s mantra and learn to win with what we’ve got.”

It’s refreshing to see these long-form thought pieces and political parties should take note. It’s not just about balanced budgets or low interest rates, but a comprehensive visioning exercise about what our economic future will look like.

In its feature How to awaken Canada’s sleeping economic giant, The Globe and Mail takes a deep dive into 10 policy areas that need actionable strategies now.

“Canada is blessed with an enviable array of natural or accumulated advantages — from almost limitless natural resources and bountiful agriculture, to a highly-skilled manufacturing work force and world-leading researchers, to coastal access to most major markets — that should allow it to be a much bigger global player than currently,” the Globe reports. “The real work will start after the April 28 vote. For the next government, the imperative will be to work with the provinces, territories and private sector to capitalize on the current wave of backs-to-the-wall patriotic fervour before the sense of urgency starts to subside.”

It’s worth the read.

The Macdonald-Laurier Institute is also doing this thinking with its Canada at a Crossroads Series. When it comes to attracting investment and boosting productivity, Ross McKitrick writes that “Declining fixed capital investment is a silent killer for Canada’s standard of living.”

While critics have declared the U.S. tariffs are a threat to the economy, there has been comparable outcry against the conditions that led to Canada’s productivity problem, he writes. “Nor has there been a comparable outcry against the policies that drove investment down such that Canadian workers now have just over half the capital available to them on a per-worker basis compared to their U.S. counterparts,” McKitrick says. “The Canadian government needs to enact major reforms to the ways corporations are taxed and regulated in order to attract new capital investment and begin rebuilding our national productivity.”

And, over at the Public Policy Forum, Riaz Kara and Mark Cameron point out that ‘Team Canada’ needs a rethink while Armine Yalnizyan, Sean Speer and Jay Khosla with WONK host Amanda Lang dive into What Canadians need to be talking about this election.

The time for avoiding serious discussions about Canada's future is over. It’s clear that a comprehensive, forward-thinking approach is essential if we are to remain resilient in the face of rising global challenges. There is no shortage of ideas. Let’s start listening.