Canadian voters went to the polls on Monday in a national election that has boiled down to a tight, two-horse race: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberals and a Conservative Party led by Erin O’Toole. The outcome will affect freight and the supply chain – even if they haven’t loomed large in the campaign or either party’s platform. Much of that will come from how the next government spends billions of dollars to help the country recover from the pandemic.
Here’s what you need to know:
1 Next government probably will require consensus
The Liberals and Conservatives are in a statistical dead heat nationally at about 31% apiece, according to the CBC’s Poll Tracker, which aggregates public opinion polls. They’re also competing with four other parties for 338 seats in Parliament. The latest projections suggest that the Liberals will take the largest number of seats but not a majority — mirroring the outcome of 2019’s election. The race is tight enough that the Conservatives could pull off an upset. In either scenario, the next government would require support of lawmakers from the New Democratic Party (NDP) and Bloc Québécois.
2 More spending to help businesses
The Liberals and Conservatives both promise to spend generously to support businesses and the broader economy. The Liberals’ overall platform has $60 billion in spending, while the Conservatives offer about $40 billion. Their platforms both set targets for 1 million new jobs. But there are differences in their approaches. The Liberals want to extend the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy Program, which has subsidized payrolls at firms that have experienced significant revenue declines because of the pandemic. Beneficiaries have included numerous trucking companies, though the recovery in the freight market has made many ineligible. The Conservatives want to phase out the subsidies and put into place a targeted program that will pay up to 50% of the salary of new hires and offer tax incentives.
3 Climate change — and carbon pricing
Compared to the U.S., there is far more consensus among political parties in Canada about climate change. The Conservatives, under O’Toole, have shifted from opposing carbon taxes to proposing an alternative scheme to the one introduced by the Liberals in 2019. It would include having individuals charged a carbon levy directly, and divert that money to savings accounts that can be used for certain environmentally friendly purchases. The conservatives also are pushing for less ambitious emissions targets. The Liberals, meanwhile, are sticking to their carbon pricing plan, which will hit $170 per metric ton in 2030. Both parties support incentives in areas such as zero-emissions trucking, though the Liberals are taking a harder line in their aim to eventually phase out carbon emissions from vehicles.
4 Vaccine mandates
For now, it appears there’s little appetite for imposing a vaccine mandate on truckers at carriers regulated by the federal government, which includes those doing cross-border and interprovincial operations. Trudeau’s government has already announced a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for federal employees and certain sectors regulated by the federal government. It included railroad workers but not truckers. The Conservatives have come out against a vaccine requirement, instead calling for testing of unvaccinated federal workers and travelers.
5 The bottom line
Trudeau called the election ahead of schedule with hopes of securing a majority in Parliament. Now, it appears that the most likely outcome will see his party holding on to but not expanding the power that it had. There wasn’t much discussion about issues like international trade, transportation infrastructure or issues in the supply chain, such as the container crunch. Transportation executives tend to lean Conservative in Canada and like to bemoan things like government subsidies. But many concede that that aggressive spending has helped keep up demand for freight, particularly consumer packaged goods. That seems unlikely to change regardless of the outcome of the election.
Click for more FreightWaves articles by Nate Tabak
Packers and movers in peenya Packers and movers in peenya Packers and movers near me Packers and movers near me Packers And Movers Banashankari Bangalore a Packers And Movers Banashankari Bangalore a Packers And Movers Jayanagar Packers And Movers Jayanagar Packers and movers Yelahanka Packers and movers Yelahanka Packers And Movers Btm Layout Packers And Movers Btm Layout Packers And Movers Koramangala Packers And Movers Koramangala Packers And Movers Hsr Layout Packers And Movers Hsr Layout Packers And Movers Bommanahalli Packers And Movers Bommanahalli Packers And Movers Begur Road Packers And Movers Begur Road Local Packers And Movers Bangalore Local Packers And Movers Bangalore Packers And Movers Ramamurthy Nagar Packers And Movers Ramamurthy Nagar Packers and movers Bangalore Packers and movers Bangalore
