Turbulence ahead: Carney forgets lessons of political history

On November 4, 1993, my then-boss, Jean Chretien, was sworn in as Prime Minister of Canada. He posed for some pictures, met with his cabinet, and then he did two things. They were the first big decisions he made.

He went into his new office and he cancelled a $6 billion helicopter contract. And then he cancelled a deal the Conservative Party had made to privatize Terminals 1 and 2 at Pearson Airport in Toronto.  Took a pen, signed the papers. Boom. Gone.

The cancellation of the helicopter contract, and the cancellation of the 57-year sweetheart deal the Tories had extended to private interests, were two of the main reasons we won the election. The Conservatives who came up with those policies?

They were reduced to two seats.

Elections are decided on lots of different factors, yes. And public opinion can and does change, yes.

But I was there, running Chretien’s war room in 1993. And I know the main reason why we picked up every single seat in the Greater Toronto Area on election day 1993.

We had said we’d tear up the Pearson Airport privatization deal on the first day in office. Which Chretien did.  He’d go on to win two more big Parliamentary majorities.

And which brings us to now, 33 years later.

A majority just (barely) secured, his opponents unpopular and unknown, Mark Carney is feeling his oats. There’s been a perceptible change in the Prime Ministerial mien.  He’s a bit cocky. Dismissive of Parliamentary attendance, disinterested in winning a majority the old-fashioned way, snippy with reporters.

So, a few days ago, word leaked out: the Carney government wanted to “unlock the full value” of Canada’s airports. In its Spring economic statement, Carney’s government said it was looking for “opportunities to unlock the full value of airports in support of investments in Canada’s long-term growth, including through alternative models of ownership.”

The big-money guys were naturally delighted. The bosses at the Canada Pension Plan called such a move “a sweet spot” for investors. It’s “trending in the right direction,” they said.

“Sweet spot,” indeed. There are 23 airports that are located on choice federally-owned lands. Pearson is one of them. The six busiest airports are also found in Vancouver, Montreal, Calgary, Edmonton and Ottawa.  They are worth untold billions to the taxpayer, who are the shareholders.

So, some people are concerned - and they’re not all public sector trade unions, either.

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