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For a Prime Minister not fond of consultation, Ottawa's 2008 review of Canadian competitiveness remains an aberration.

Compete to Win, the final report of the government's Competition Policy Review Panel, was the product of more than a year of work, 155 briefs, meetings with 150 groups and individuals across the country, and 20 specially commissioned studies.

The report went far beyond competition rules, laying out a comprehensive road map for boosting Canada's economic performance in a globalized world.

Stephen Harper embraced many of the panel's recommendations. He lowered business taxes, aggressively pursued free trade deals and modernized laws on competition, intellectual property and copyright.

Nearly seven years later, however, the report's toughest and most ambitious ideas remain unfinished business, including allowing bank mergers, opening the telecommunications and airline industries to full foreign competition and breaking down trade walls between provinces.

University of Western Ontario Ivey Business School professor Paul Boothe rates the government's progress as "mixed." In a new study for the Canadian Council of Chief Executives, Prof. Boothe breaks down the competition panel report's 65 recommendations into 78 policy options. Of those, just 23 have been fully implemented. Another 32 remain undone and 23 are partially adopted.

"Much remains to be done if we are to compete to win," Prof. Boothe lamented in the study, being released Monday.

This isn't just about missing check marks on an unfinished agenda. Many of the fundamental problems identified by the panel, headed by former BCE Inc. chief executive L.R. (Red) Wilson, continue to hobble the Canadian economy. Some have worsened – most notably, manufacturers and other exporters are struggling to find a place in global supply chains.

The ultimate goal is to raise Canadian living standards. And that's as relevant as ever.

The recent plunge in the price of oil and other commodities has exposed troubling weaknesses in Canada's economic model. There are too many internal inconsistencies, vital sectors with little or no competition, and a tax system skewed towards income rather than consumption. Alberta's current budget struggles are a prime example of why that's misguided. And why not let municipalities levy sales taxes to fund their pressing infrastructure needs, rather than forcing them to serially beg Ottawa and the provinces for cash?

The vast majority of Canada's industries are open to full competition, domestic and foreign. That's not the case in airlines, telecommunications and a clutch of other sectors, such as dairy and poultry. The result is that Canadians pay more than they should to eat, to fly, and for TV, Internet and mobile phone services – costs that the government rarely bothers to justify.

Prof. Boothe said the government's foreign investment review regime is "in a state of disarray" after its 2012 decision to okay Chinese state-owned CNOOC Ltd.'s takeover of oil and gas producer Nexen Inc., while closing the door on future deals. The policy has created "substantial confusion" and discouraged investment in Canada, he said.

"We cannot afford to be branded as 'closed for business' by the big international capital pools, including those with government backing," he said.

Another key recommendation of the 2008 Wilson report was the creation of an Australian-style competition council – an independent and non-partisan body dedicated to prodding government to make more coherent economic policy decisions. Mr. Harper would be wise to put it back on his agenda.

With just months to go before the next election, none of the major parties have well developed economic platforms. That's unfortunate.

The Conservatives seem uninterested in having a serious debate about the country's economic challenges. When the recovery was going well, the government was eager to talk about its "jobs and growth" record at every turn. Now that the economy has stalled, it's doing everything it can to change the subject, preferring instead to fight crime, communism and terrorism.

NDP Leader Thomas Mulcair has vowed to reinstate higher business taxes, while offering targeted relief to small businesses and manufacturers.

The Liberals, under Leader Justin Trudeau, say they will make infrastructure spending the central pillar of their economic policy, but have so far offered scant details.

All three leaders could start by dusting off a copy of Compete to Win.

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