In the context of globalization, we often hear it said, be it in Canada or even in Quebec, that the rules of the game are not fair. People say that emerging economies exploit their workers, that they are not respectful of social, wage and economic equity.
People also say that our environmental regulations are not the same and that there is a certain exploitation of human, natural and environmental resources such that this creates an imbalance and prevents us, to a certain degree, from being competitive. We might consider that as an excuse. Is that not what Canada itself does in the case of some of its investments?
For example, we are told that things are going quite well in the mining industry in Peru. People however tell us that there is some exploitation of workers wage-wise. Furthermore, it seems that Canadian businesses are being somewhat careless, lending themselves to virtually uncontrolled exploitation of the environment. In the context of this worldwide competition, are we not doing to these countries, which are having difficulty putting their economies back on their feet, what we criticize others for doing?