Announcing the Launch of New North Star II: A Challenge-Driven Industrial Strategy for Canada Français
OTTAWA, April 27, 2020 /CNW/ - One advised Stephen Harper. The other advised Justin Trudeau. The third is a market maker on Bay Street. Together, Sean Speer, Robert Asselin and Royce Mendes are rethinking how Canada can build its competitiveness amidst the rise of an intangibles economy and ever increasing geopolitical complexity. A new PPF report that's been over a year in development and research.
New North Star II is the second phase to New North Star I which was released in April 2019, to great uptake and interest. The first paper spoke about the how public policy was falling behind in the surge of the intangibles economy, from tech to resources to the value of brands and what was needed was to build a new policy consensus in area such as intellectual property, foreign investment, the role of big data and the development of skills-laden workforce.
This research report re-iterates the story of how the world has changed and how long-help assumptions in Canada need to adjust accordingly. The Washington Consensus that has shaped domestic economic policies and global institutions in a laissez-faire mould for roughly 40 years is being challenged now by two geo-economic realities that Canadian policy markers can't afford to overlook. These geo-economic trends were occurring before the COVID-19 pandemic, but this crisis has only intensified the pressure for Canada to focus on its own national interest.
The report serves as a body of research meant to help get us out of the starting gate, as these conversations about recovery and even rebuild begin and grow. It proposes to situate an industrial strategy at the intersection of Canada's pre-existing economic strengths and its most pressing societal challenges. As Canada looks to re-start the engine of our economy in the midst of a global COVID-19 crisis, it's imperative that we consider the unique situation we find ourselves in that makes a challenge-driven growth strategy the right choice for Canada moving ahead.
Key to the reports applicability is the fact that it is co-authored by two policy advisors with different political associations and a leading economist. The research and the recommendations go beyond partisan affiliations, beyond regionalism and beyond the next election cycle. The report includes considerations for an approach to choosing what Canada's priorities should be under a new industrial strategy, providing definition for policymakers charged with determining how and where to apply state resources.
A challenge-driven industrial strategy can serve as a "north star" for Canadian policymakers during this period of significant technological and geopolitical change. The world is changing, and long-held policy assumptions in Canada need to adjust accordingly. We invite you to read the report and get engaged.
To learn more about how Canada should navigate a new course in industrial policy, read the full report here: https://ppforum.ca/new-north-star-2/
QUOTATIONS
"Industrial policy" is a loaded term on both sides of the political spectrum. Yet Canada faces an economic challenge of an unprecedented size and character. New North Star 2 presents a plan that accounts for the technological push-and-pull of today's global economy and finds common ground between opposite ends of the political spectrum, in an effort to jump-start a Canadian economy bogged down in the COVID-19 economic crisis. Robert Asselin
Building off of last year's seminal report on the rise of the Intangibles Economy, PPF's newest contribution to Canada's economic conversation proposes an industrial plan to "rebuild Canada" post COVID-19. A plan that should be starting not in two years, but in a few months. Sean Speers
BIOGRAPHIES
Authors, available for media opportunities.
Sean Speer is currently Fellow in Residence and Prime Minister of Canada Fellow at the Public Policy Forum. He is also an assistant professor at the University of Toronto's Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy. He previously served as a senior economic adviser to former Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
Robert Asselin is a Fellow at the Public Policy Forum and at the University of Toronto Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy. He previously served as Director of Policy to Canada's Finance Minister and Associate Director of the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Ottawa. He is a former advisor to Prime Ministers Trudeau and Martin.
Royce Mendes is Executive Director and Senior Economist at CIBC Capital Markets, where he leads the group's efforts in monitoring and forecasting the Canadian economy, a team judged to be the most accurate by both Reuters and Consensus Economics in 2018. Prior to joining CIBC, he held roles at the Bank of Canada as Portfolio Manager for Canada's foreign reserves.
SOURCE Public Policy Forum
MEDIA CONTACTS : Heather Cavanagh, Director of Communications, Public Policy Forum, [email protected] (email preferred), 613-791-9546; Tomek Sysak, Marketing Specialist, Public Policy Forum, [email protected] (email preferred)
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