Canada’s export control regime is holding back business

If the federal government wants Canadian firms to scale and become global leaders, it needs to look at export control regime more seriously. Chronic delays and regulatory ambiguity are erecting a chokepoint of Ottawa’s own making.

Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand, right, pictured with Mexico's Secretary of Foreign Affairs Roberto Velasco Álvarez in Ottawa on July 17, 2026. Anand's Global Affairs Canada department, which oversees the export permits, has service standard for processing permit applications. The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade

Opinion

BY MATT MALONE

October 19, 2026

As Canada continues to de-risk its trade relationship with the United States, domestic business and scale-ups are increasingly being exhorted to scale outward to new markets.

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