In my latest column for the Economy Lab feature of the Globe and Mail, I take issue with the journalists who think the only issue that matters with internal barriers to trade is the price tag we assign to them. The fact that any attempt to quantify their cost is subject to challenge becomes the story, whereas in reality it is a disingenuous distraction much beloved by apologists for the status quo (cf Baloney Meter!). We know four things for sure about internal trade barriers: they’re real, they cost us a lot, their damaging effects compound over time, and they violate our rights as Canadians. Isn’t that damning enough?
If you want chapter and verse about the problem and the solutions, see the MLI paper I co-wrote with John Robson and Bob Knox, Citizen of One, Citizen of the Whole.
