Реферат: Canadian National Unity Essay Research Paper Canadian
the danger of disunity. Yet recently Ottawa has reversed that policy by stating
that if Quebec separated, anglophone Montreal would have an incentive to secede
and indeed would secede. So Ottawa is now taking the possibility of further
fragmentation seriously. People tend to look only at the economic savings of a
breakup and not the political consequences of additional seperation. It is time
that they carefully examine the basis of continuing seperation of Canada, and of
Quebec. Three major difficulties would confront the federal government in its
attempt to keep English-speaking Canada united after Quebec’s secession. First,
once the glue of federalism is gone, the rich provinces: British Columbia,
Ontario, and Alberta would no longer have any reason to give pay outs to the
poor provinces like Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, and Manitoba. The average
Albertan pays an annual tax of $900 to enable a province like Newfoundland,
which receives 60 per cent of its budget from the general slush fund, to remain
semi-solvent and attached to the confederation (If Quecec Goes, Pg. 71). But in
the absence of a unified country, would that resident of Alberta or British
Columbia be so inclined to pay this confederation tax? Second, an independent
Quebec would geographically destroy four provinces: Newfoundland, New Brunswick,
Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island; from the rest of Canada. Undoubtedly,
Quebec as an independent country would allow Canadians all the privileges of
transit, communications, and the flow of goods, services, and people now
accorded Americans with Canada or Mexico. But the feeling of being cut adrift
would still live strong in Atlantic Canada.. A third difficulty, expressed by
western Canada, would be the feeling of alienation from and dominance by the
economic power of Ontario. This feeling of dependence has been put in place by a
tarrif policy that forced westerners to buy dear in Toronto and sell cheap east
or west, rather than follow the more travelled and profitable lines of commerce
that flow north to south. The purpose of this so-called national policy was to
jump-start the industrial base in central Canada, but, in the opinion of
westerners, at their expense. With the advent of the Canada-U.S. Free Trade