Many Maritime businesses seek reduction in interprovincial trade barriers

More Canadian businesses are calling for fewer interprovincial trade barriers.

Canadian industries continue to face barriers trying to sell their products interprovincially.

Karl Coutinho, the president of Avondale Sky Winery & Restaurant in Popular Grove, N.S., says the current interprovincial trade situation has affected his business.

“Guests who’ve had a great experience here in Nova Scotia at our winery (and) they return home maybe to Ontario, (and) they want to order some of our wine, they simply can’t order direct to consumer,” says Coutinho.

Coutinho says he’d love to see a break down of those barriers.

“Canada should be able to trade province to province, territory to territory, freely,” says Coutinho. “I think all of my colleagues would agree, and probably in other industries as well.”

When speaking with reporters in Halifax on Wednesday, Transport Minister Anita Anand said, “Yes,” to the interprovincial trade barriers being wiped away in 30 days.

“We are making incredible fast-paced progress with all of the provinces and territories,” says Anand. “The work has already been occurring and the willingness to reduce interprovincial barriers to trade and add up to $200 billion to the Canadian economy is palpable.”

Anand says during a meeting with premiers on Friday, they reached three “strong” recommendations on how to improve interprovincial trade barriers.

“One, to implement mutual recognition across the country…in other words, respecting the rules in place in other jurisdictions. Secondly, we all agreed to reduce the exceptions in the Canadian Free Trade Act. And thirdly, we all agreed to facilitate labor mobility across the country, so that if you’re a construction worker, a nurse, or a doctor, you don’t have to reapply for permits and licenses simply because you’re going where demand is taking you to another part of the country,” says Anand.

Coutinho says Nova Scotia has done a “great job of leading the way” when it comes reducing trade barriers for products coming into the province.

“But what we’re waiting for is for all the provinces to adopt and kind of reciprocate that same thing that Nova Scotia has done,” he says. “It’s almost like its an untapped market which makes no sense because its our own country,” he says.

A virtual meeting with the prime minister and all premiers about the topic took place on Wednesday afternoon, but details about it have yet to be released.