“2024 is going to be another difficult year” economically, declared the Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau, during a speech organized Tuesday morning by the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal.
Economic uncertainty, climate change, artificial intelligence, geopolitical tensions and contestation of the world order by emerging countries: these are challenges that destabilize Canadians, mentioned Mr. Trudeau.
“We are wondering if Canada’s promise still holds. This promise is that with each generation, we will succeed a little more than the previous generation,” continued Mr. Trudeau.
Asked about the fears of small businesses who must honor a large loan from the federal government obtained during the COVID-19 pandemic at the latest this week, the Prime Minister judged that it is “time to move on” and that sufficiently repayment or refinancing options are available to them. He did not comment on possible additional aid to help entrepreneurs cope with the economic slowdown.
Investment before balance
On the other hand, Mr. Trudeau affirmed that it is more important for him to invest in the economy of the future, particularly in companies linked to the energy transition, than to regain budget balance. “Building healthy industries moving towards carbon neutrality will yield much more than taking this money to reduce the debt,” he said.
The Prime Minister also defended the current immigration thresholds, saying they are necessary to counter the labor shortage. He called on universities and businesses that welcome foreign students and workers to do their part to provide them with housing, in particular by building residences.
“We want to change the way things are done in housing, so that things move faster,” he also declared.
Regarding the prospect of seeing Donald Trump once again establish himself in the White House, Mr. Trudeau admitted that the relationship with him “was not easy the first time and it will not be easy a second time times “. “But we cannot imagine that it will be easy with the United States,” he added, referring to differences with Joe Biden, particularly in relation to tax credits on the purchase of electric vehicles. However, he estimated that the years of environmental inertia during Trump’s reign allowed Canada to get ahead in the development of a “green” economy.
Mr. Trudeau also touted his Online News Act, which would be one of the tools allowing multinationals to return their profits to the creation of local content.
More details will follow.