Dr. Heather Exner-Pirot of the MacDonald-Laurier Institute explores the mining opportunity in NS and NB

Canada has a productivity problem but many of the diagnoses, such as blaming immigrants, are not compelling.  Dr. Heather Exner-Pirot, Senior Fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, makes a strong case that a main reason for our weak productivity has been a sharp decline in investment into Canada’s resource sectors including oil and gas, mining and electricity production.  David talks with Dr. Exner-Pirot about her thesis on this week's Insights podcast.  They talk about the national challenges but also zoom in on Atlantic Canada,  Nova Scotia, it turns out, is one of the worst places in the world for mining according to the Fraser Institute.   David and Heather discuss how places like Nova Scotia and New Brunswick can become mining-friendly jurisdictions while still maintaining a rigorous environmental and regulatory regime.