Stuart Culbertson: Canada cannot afford to allow the perception of an undependable border

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Last month, a crack emerged in the mythology of Canada’s relations with our American neighbour. The fabled “longest undefended border in the world” came under attack. Not an attack from outside our boundaries, but one launched from within as angry protesters blocked several key border crossings for several days in mid-February.

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Beyond the substance (or lack thereof) behind these actions, the border blockade should have raised louder alarms than it did in Canada, especially given its potential impact on our most important trading relationship. Our US-bound exports cross over 100 land borders and account for one-third of Canada’s GDP. Late last year, BC got a taste of just how important open borders can be when our road and rail transport systems were severed by floods, and vital supplies had to be diverted through the US border points for delivery. In Ontario, where the automotive sector dominates provincial manufacturing, the closed border created more than an inconvenience — it blocked a critical artery in one of the most efficient international supply chains in the world.

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Throughout the COVID pandemic, we have certainly heard a lot about supply chains. The need to “secure” supply chains of critical goods has received much profile, as has the call to “shorten” them to tighten proximity to the ultimate consumers of products. The supply chain supporting automotive trade between Canada and the US has been secured through almost 60 years of free trade arrangements to become one of the most highly integrated anywhere in the world. Most of this trade flows over the Ambassador Bridge between Windsor and Detroit — the busiest Canada-US border crossing with 2.2 million truck crossings per year accounting for an estimated $13.5 million US per hour in trade and related economic activity.

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The three “Cascade Gateway” commercial border crossings serving BC’s Lower Mainland see over 3,000 commercial trucks per day carrying an estimated $44 million in daily trade. Commenting on the impact of February’s border blockades in BC, the Surrey Chamber of Commerce called them “an unacceptable sabotage of the economy — choking already impacted supply chains, businesses and jobs.”

Not surprisingly, when this well-oiled, just-in-time delivery system was disrupted by a handful of blockaders, the phone lines and media links lit up between Canadian and US leaders. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer protested that a few disgruntled Canadian truckers engaged in an illegal blockade had no right to bring Michigan’s economy “to its knees.” She cited an economic impact report that pegged the loss associated with auto plant closures and production slowdowns on working people and businesses in Michigan at over $50 million US per week.

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In Washington, Michigan Rep. Elissa Slotkin suggested a dramatic onshoring solution to shorten supply chains by calling for American manufacturing to be brought home. “It doesn’t matter if it’s an adversary or an ally,” she tweeted. “We can’t be reliant on auto parts coming in from other countries.” The rising tension culminated in an emergency phone call in which Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised US President Joe Biden that he would take immediate action to clear the border.

With our borders now reopened to commercial traffic, some may conclude the emergency is over. But is this the case? Our short-term legal injunctions and police actions may have removed the blockers, but have they removed the huge potential risk of an undependable border to our economy? Given the prevailing trade policy climate in Washington, DC, the blockade may have sparked a much larger economic threat to our trade relations with the US

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President Biden’s predecessor was well-known to be a strong and reckless “America First” advocate. President Donald Trump succeeded in ripping up NAFTA, replacing it with a weaker accord and then keeping Canada on tenterhooks as he thrashed and bashed our trading relationship with volleys of trade-restricting executive orders. It would be easy to conclude that President Biden, with his professed belief in international frameworks and rules of law, has turned a corner on his predecessor’s protectionism of him. But is this just wishful thinking?

In one of his first actions as president, Biden issued an executive order strengthening “Buy America” provisions in US procurement. More recently, I have proposed a tax credit favoring electric vehicles produced in the US — in clear violation of the spirit, if not the letter, of our free trade framework. In January, at the exact same moment Trudeau was in Washington lobbying lawmakers on the need to reverse this measure, Biden was in a Michigan auto plant extolling its virtues in expanding the production of American-made, union-made, clean vehicles.

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In the cacophony prevailing in Washington these days, a consistent message is ringing through: Domestic manufacturing isn’t just another industry. It’s a vital underpinning to a thriving middle class with associated benefits to high-tech research and a greener economy. Amidst the clatter, we can hear the clear sound of supply chains shortening. Adding to the mix, the 2022 mid-term elections promise to focus once again on key swing states such as Michigan and Ohio — the very places where much of Canada’s automotive exports are shipped.

If Canada cannot ensure that the border will remain open and dependable, the calls for onshoring this work back home in the US will become louder. in the words of former US ambassador to Canada Bruce Heymanthe border blockades “may actually propel more domestic manufacturing and decision-making over the next few years (that) may do more harm to Canada and its economy long term than anything else that’s out there.”

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Canada cannot afford to allow the perception of an undependable border to give more fuel to these protectionist sentiments. Now is the time to focus on long-term commitments that extend well beyond short-term actions. It is time to secure our border crossings as dependable, strategic assets for both economies.

A “Team Canada” approach involving federal, provincial and municipal commitments to border security and infrastructure enhancements would be timely. This could be complemented by engaging US regional counterparts who share the same interest to create a powerful and unique bilateral undertaking. Such a commitment would allow Canada to clearly outline to all concerned the legal, border security and law enforcement contingencies it is prepared to deploy in the future to secure this vital, strategic economic infrastructure.

It is time for Canada to demonstrate what we have learned from last month’s blockades before they threaten serious economic damage in the future. While tow trucks may have succeeded in pulling trucks off border crossings, they did not haul away the larger threats that loom in the wake of this action.

Stuart Culbertson is a former deputy minister in the BC government, and served as the province’s Trade Representative during the Canada-US Free Trade Agreement negotiations.