|
NAFTA | Gulf War |
Meech Lake |
Charlottetown
Accords | Kim Campbell
| Oka |
Cod Collapse
By the mid 80's Canada was ready for
change and a coalition of nationalist Francophone forces
in Quebec and Western Canadian Conservatives united to
unseat the Liberals from many of their traditional
strongholds and take power Federally. Although the
government had changed, the problems and challenges
remained roughly the same and the applied solutions not
appreciably different. The country still struggled with
the separatist movement in Quebec and increasing
deficits Federally. Attempts were made at settling the outstanding
issues and questions concerning the constitution and
federal provincial relations but
these formalized accords, and agreements all failed to
pass the tests set for them. The most fundamental change
in Canada US relations in generations was
institutionalized in the form of the NAFTA or North
American Free Trade Agreement.
The Conservative party, which had lost
touch with power, struggled through its years in power
under the iron handed leadership of Brian Mulroney but
by the end of it's second term, the party was spinning
apart with various segments marching off in different
directions, The Quebec nationalists stung by the
rejection of Meech Lake and the Charlotte town accords,
returned to the separatists fold. The right wing
conservatives split off to eventually form a new party,
(the Reform Party) and
liberal conservatives were drawn back into the Liberal
party fold leaving the Progressive Conservatives
divided, confused and of little threat to the iberals. |
