Democratic values as a competitive advantage for Canadian products

The Canadian Press recently reported that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, speaking at a public debate at the University of Ottawa, argued that instead of turning their backs on Chinese-made products altogether, companies should opt more often for materials and products from countries that have less impact on climate change and where workers’ rights are respected.

 

“There are places in the world where labour standards are terrible, but where companies can get cheaper goods. We just have to be consistent with our values,” Mr. Trudeau explained.

Mr Trudeau noted that Canadian-made products do more to uphold these values than, for example, “cheap lithium batteries from China”.

The Prime Minister also argued that investors value the stability of countries with a strong social safety net.

“If our democratic system is so great, why is it that for so many years we have turned to the resources of autocracies that do not enjoy our freedoms?” questioned Mr Trudeau, arguing that “if we really want to be a model for the world, we must be consistent in all our approaches”.

“We certainly shouldn’t be vulnerable to decisions that countries like Russia or China might make to jeopardize our prosperity and our future because they don’t agree with our policies,” the Prime Minister said.

 

Their joint conference can be seen here.