Madam Chair, of course the member for Winnipeg North, too, was a member of the small but mighty Liberal caucus that I joined in 2013, and he was a true friend of Marc Garneau's, so I am grateful to him for joining me in the tribute.
The member is right that at a time when we are being faced by punitive, illegal and unjustified tariffs from abroad, one of the best things we can do to help ourselves is eliminate the barriers we have imposed on ourselves. A study done for the IMF estimates that internal barriers to trade in Canada amount to a 7% tariff that we put on each other. One of the things that fills me with so much hope is that Canadians get it. This has been an issue that for many years economists and policy wonks have understood. Changing it and getting rid of the barriers would help our whole country.
It is not a partisan issue. Jason Kenney, a former member of the House and a former premier of Alberta, has been a long-time, vocal and effective champion of internal trade in Canada, so I really do hope that, while we will disagree about many things in the House, one issue that all members of the House will be able to agree on is that by trading with each other, by trusting each other, we can make Canada stronger.
Conservative premiers support it, like Premier Ford and Premier Houston. NDP premiers support it, like Premier Kinew and Premier Eby. Liberal premiers support it, like Premier Holt. Therefore, I really hope that this will be an issue that not only unites Canadians and the Canadian economy but also, and I have a fragile hope here, maybe even unites the members of the House.