National Post: Brexit scholar Anand Menon says closer ties with Europe cannot replace Canada’s economic relationship with the U.S.
…Q: Brexit was sold partly as a way for Britain to expand trade beyond Europe. What did Britain get wrong about diversification that Canada should avoid as it looks beyond the United States?
Anand Menon: Bear in mind, the vast majority of Canada’s trade is still with the United States and will be, because that’s the key lesson, isn’t it? That geography is the major determinant of trade patterns, and you trade a lot more with countries that are close to you. I think that the untruth sold by Brexiters about trade was the argument that Asia’s growing a lot faster than Europe, so if we become free of the European Union, we can trade more with the part of the world that’s growing very fast.
…So you can do trade deals. One of the reasons why the European Union is willing to make all these very nice positive noises towards Canada, without being too cynical about it, is because Canada is bloody miles away. You’re not going to get livestock wandering over the border between Canada and the European Union. So, in a sense, it’s far easier to do this sort of thing with a country that’s miles away because you do far less trade with them, and the risks are far less…