Alberta’s Energy Boom is of Great Benefit to Canada as a Whole – Comments by Thomas d’Aquino on CBC Radio’s The Current

December 21, 2005

Edited transcript of comments by Thomas d’Aquino, Chief Executive and President of the Canadian Council of Chief Executives, on CBC Radio’s The Current, December 21, 2005:

“When I grew up in British Columbia, it was one of the richest provinces in Canada. Then for about a 15- or 20-year period, it went downhill, and now it is coming back up again. Ontario still accounts for 42 or 43 percent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product. But we should not assume that Ontario must and always will be dominant. There will be shifts, and we should not whine or cry about it. There will be some movement of businesses and people to Alberta and the other energy-producing provinces, as there has been already, but that should be seen as an opportunity rather than a threat. Keep in mind that while Ontario’s auto sector is now facing some cold and chilly winds, the province still has a very sizeable chunk of the country’s technology and services market. So if there is a transfer of businesses and jobs – particularly to traditionally have-not provinces like Newfoundland – this should be seen in a positive light.

“The issue of how we deal with the stresses and strains [among provinces and regions] is important. There is unanimity in the business community, right across Canada, that no-one should even think of resurrecting something like the National Energy Policy to make a grab for Alberta’s resources. Some people are actually talking about these things and I hope that those conversations go nowhere. It is bad public policy. The wealth of Alberta can and will be circulated in Canada by market means. Albertans are not just going to bury this money in the ground. It will be invested in other parts of Canada, and we should look upon that as an opportunity rather than as a threat.

“Let us keep in mind that under our Constitution, natural resources belong to the provinces. We already are suffering in this country with a federal government that is meddling in so many areas of provincial jurisdiction. This is causing tension in the federation. The national unity issue is not just about Quebec. There are stresses and strains right across the country. I have friends in Alberta who are strong federalists who are beginning to ask themselves some serious questions. What does this increasing fragmentation really mean for the West? If Ottawa were to reach out and say, ‘Resources belong to everybody, not just to the people of Alberta or Newfoundland or British Columbia or Saskatchewan,’ then I think you might be talking about a National Energy Policy by another name. Some people are saying, ‘We can’t do it as brutally as we did last time – we have to be more refined.” This is dangerous language. I think we have to be open and constructive. For decades, Westerners argued that their part of the country was the hinterland, exploited for the benefit of the wealthy manufacturing centre of the country. Now, fortunately, we are beginning to see a better distribution of wealth across the country.

“Canada does need an energy strategy. In my own organization we are working on some ideas right now. But as Westerners will tell you, the major energy problem in Canada is not in the West. It is in the confused policies that we have in central Canada – particularly in Ontario, where there is a real need for an intelligent energy strategy. An energy strategy is not just about oil and gas. It has many components: hydro-electric power, which is the dominant player in Quebec; oil and gas, which is the key player in Alberta; and nuclear power, which is an important factor in Ontario. Eventually technology will help us develop alternative forms of energy. Canada’s long-term energy strategy will involve more than oil and gas.

“I am not a believer in incentives generally or subsidies as a matter of principle. But when people talk about lucrative incentives for the oil patch, in fairness [we should recognize that] there have also been subsidies for Ontario’s auto industry, there have been subsidies for Atlantic Canada, and so on. The incentives that have gone into Alberta have helped develop our tar sands, and we are seeing the results of that today. We now have the second-largest proven oil reserves in the world next to Saudi Arabia. Oil sands are critical to Canada’s future. The enormous strength of Canada in exports right now is of benefit to all Canadians, and increasingly tar sands production is a factor. Canada’s ability to reach out to China is enhanced by the tar sands. Some people might look upon that as a windfall only for Alberta and a threat to a lot of other Canadians. I don’t see it that way. I look upon it as an opportunity for all Canadians.”