The Hollowing Out

With a 6 percent unemployment rate and the highest GDP growth in the G7, it would be difficult to make the Canadian economy look any stronger. And while it remains unclear to whom the credit is due, a CTV/Globemedia poll released today showed that, as expected, Stephen Harper’s Conservatives are cashing in!

This is definitely bad news for Dion and the Liberals, as sound economic management has traditionally been perceived as their biggest strength. With that asset now lost to Harper, one of Dion’s main focuses for the coming year will be to snatch it back by demonstrating to Canadians that the strong economy is not due to Mr. Harper’s good management, but to a combination of Alberta Oil Sands growth and ten years of Liberal rule.

All I can say is that he faces a steep climb. Let’s face it, it’s difficult to convince Canadians that the economy is being badly handled when the unemployment rate is at a 33 year low, but the one area that may hold the solution to his problem is the “hollowing out” of head offices.

In the past two years of Conservative rule, we’ve seen an unprecedented number of Canadian firms get taken over by foreign giants. First it was Inco, then Falconbridge, then the 350 year old HBC, then Fairmont Hotels, then Alcan, and yesterday, the country’s last steel producer: Stelco. Though Canadians might not be known for their strong sense of patriotism, it’s only natural to feel a certain anxiety when so many head offices start moving abroad. This was further demonstrated by yesterday’s same CTV poll, which also showed a large majority of Canadians concerned by the recent trend.

Sound economic management has been central to the Liberal brand ever since the Chrétien/Martin team slayed the deficit. Dion ran his leadership campaign on “the three pillar approach”: a sound economy, a just society, and sustainability. According to the poll, he’s sold himself to Canadians on the last two issues; time to regain the first.