3 ways to revitalize Canada: Dominic Barton

The man hand-picked to help revive the Canadian economy has hope. But he’s adamant that the country’s growth needs to be kick started soon.

Dominic Barton, the global managing director of consulting giant McKinsey & Co., was tapped by Finance Minister Bill Morneau to chair a federal advisory council responsible for drawing up a plan to lead Canada out of its cycle of feeble economic growth.

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Barton spoke to The Canadian Press about his new role on this council, which is made up of 14 people from the world of business and academia. He offered a peek at his potential prescriptions for Canada.

Barton says many of the country’s existing sectors hold significant promise, and he’s zeroed in on new growth areas Canada should pounce on.

In short, staying the current economic course isn’t an option, he warns. “I think there’s so much potential to unlock opportunities going forward, even though there are challenges,” Barton said during his first interview since joining the council last winter.

“If we don’t do anything, it’s not a good picture because we’re an aging population […] It’s actually important we do something, I think, that’s relatively aggressive.”

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Barton’s ideas for rejuvenating Canada include:

• pushing deeper into Asian markets;
• learning how to help smaller companies scale up; and
• enticing large-scale investors from around the globe to pour cash into major public infrastructure projects, like railways and roads.

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In sharing his suggestions, Barton stressed he didn’t want to pre-suppose what the council will ultimately come up with in its official recommendations. But with 30 years of global consulting experience, his recommendations will get a lot of attention from Morneau, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and Barton’s fellow council members.

The group, which met for the first time last Monday, knows the country is struggling through an extended period of weak growth. It’s trying to shake off the net negative impact of low oil prices.

Further, The finance minister has instructed the council to consult broadly for fresh ideas on how to grow the economy over the long haul, says Barton.

“We want to focus on three to five big [suggestions] that will actually move the dial,” as opposed to too many, says Barton.

With Canada’s highly educated, respected population and strong research facilities, Barton believes the country is well-positioned to take advantage of the current economic trends. He adds Canada could be doing far more to go after the Asian market—without reducing the volume of business it does with the U.S.

Barton notes Canada needs more with Asia through vehicles like the 12-country Trans-Pacific Partnership and, perhaps, an eventual free-trade deal with China.

Plus, he says Canada can lift its waning productivity by boosting infrastructure investment. For example, he supports Ottawa’s intention to attract capital from institutional investors like major public pension funds. “It’s amazing that no G7 country has been investing in infrastructure when interest rates are at 50-year lows. This is shocking.”