Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney's latest bid to streamline government's project reviews has stirred up excitement among global investors, according to a Canadian expert.
As part of the prime minister's effort to draw investment, Carney tabled the Building Canada Strong Act in Parliament on September 21 to address Canada's lengthy federal project reviews, setting a strict one-year timeframe for major infrastructure and resource decisions.
Days earlier, Toronto hosted the inaugural Canada Investment Summit from September 14 to 15, drawing more than 100 of the world's biggest names in finance. Carney used the platform to pledge a trillion Canadian dollars in investment over the next five years, positioning Canada as a more reliable destination for global capital.
His pitch covered 167 investment opportunities across sectors including energy, critical minerals, defense, and artificial intelligence data centers, part of a broader push to reduce Canada's economic reliance on the U.S. as trade tensions persist.
At the landmark summit, Carney also introduced the Productivity Mega Deduction (PMD), allowing Canadian businesses to permanently and immediately write off most new capital investments. By lowering the marginal tax rate on new investment, the strategy sent a powerful signal to global investors.
Julian Karaguesian, an economics professor at McGill University and also former special advisor to Canada's Ministry of Finance, said Carney's focus on nation-building projects marks a new era for Canada.
"There was the impression particularly from about 2015 to the time Carney became prime minster that Canada was not open for business. Projects took a long time to get approved, that there were all kinds of obstacles. We had a lot of issues to sort out before we could bring the world's investors here. So, Carney has now promised to address all these issues," he said.
"There was, I would say, a high level of interest by the rest of the world in what's going on here and also by Canadian investors. I mean Carney stirred up a lot of excitement," the expert said.
As the trade war between Canada and the U.S. escalates, Canada aims to steer toward a more self-sufficient economy, with diversified foreign investment playing a vital role in that effort.
Carney's move to streamline Canada's project review stirs up excitement among global investors: expert
