NowMedia video host Jim Csek welcomed Kelowna businesswoman and former MLA Renee Merrifield back into the studio for another episode of Beyond the Ballot on Tuesday.
In a recent KelownaNow live stream, hosts Renee Merrifield and Jim Csek delved into Canada's exclusion from a major White House meeting involving European leaders, inflation trends and tariffs and trade disputes, the Air Canada labour dispute, aboriginal land claims and more.
Merrifield pointed to Canada's absence from a high-profile White House meeting involving US President Donald Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and European leaders.
"Mark Carney's claim that we are the most European, non-European nation just doesn't hold water when you get all of the European nations' delegations going to Washington, DC for this meeting with Trump and Zelenskyy," she said. "Canada's nowhere on the invite list... This seems like a pretty big snub to me."
She noted that other leaders, such as Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, prioritized the event by canceling vacations, while speculating that Canada may have declined an invitation due to Carney's schedule.
Merrifield also raised concerns about Canada's position between the US and Russia, yet being overlooked.
"The reality is we sit between them and we weren't even invited to the party," she added, warning that this reflects poorly on Canada's global strategy and could exacerbate issues like impending 35% US tariffs.
On the economy side, Merrifield linked inflation slowdowns to falling energy costs but criticized self-imposed tariffs and high taxation.
"Trade relationships have not advanced under the Carney government so far. We have not seen any momentum built whatsoever," she stated. "It's looking scary for the Canadian economy at this point, especially if he's not gonna negotiate the 35% tariffs away."
The conversation highlighted food inflation rising 3.3% in Canada versus a 2.9% drop in the US, attributing it to policies like tariffs on Chinese goods, which she called "another form of indirect taxes on Canadian people."
Merrifield also addressed the recent Air Canada labor dispute, calling it a "huge misstep" for the government.
She criticized Labour Minister Patty Hajdu's response as "tone deaf and so ignorant," pointing to a poll she saw that said over 85% of Canadians supported the flight attendants.
"Air Canada's been saved over and over and over again... by the Canadian taxpayer," she said, urging better support for workers who haven't seen pay increases since 2003-2004.
Discussing broader issues, Merrifield warned of capital flight and criticized the government's handling of Indigenous land claims in BC.
She described a recent court decision awarding 780 acres to the Cowichan Nation as "monumental," potentially affecting property rights across the province.
"This is so significant... It throws absolutely every title into question," she said.
Finally, on China's tariffs on Canadian canola, Merrifield accused the government of weakness.
"China's not our friend right now... For us to give them $4 billion of a contract... while they're literally decimating one of our industries seems very, very incongruent and very destructive at worst," she said.
Merrifield's said this could be a leadership moment for Carney but the federal government was failing to show “any amount of strength.”
