What made me say that? I mean, there are really two issues here. We've had a long-standing productivity issue. That's why the senior deputy governor sounded the alarm. At that point, we'd gotten through COVID-19 and we'd gotten inflation down. It was time to get back to some of the longer-term issues, and that one was front and centre. A lot has changed in a year.
Last week, when I said our standard of living was lower, I was really referring to the fact that U.S. tariffs have fundamentally fractured our trade relationship with our biggest trading partner. That is a big, negative structural shock to the Canadian economy. It's going to destroy some capacity. It's going to raise costs. Monetary policy can help smooth that adjustment, but it can't undo the effects of tariffs. If we don't do something about it, our standard of living in Canada will be on a permanently lower path.
As I intimated in my opening remarks, there are things we can do about it in the country. We need to improve our competitiveness. We need to improve our productivity. We need more investment. Those are the kinds of positive structural reforms that could bend the path back up.