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He added: “There was no place in our budget for saying speculatively what we might or might not do in the future based on analysis that hasn’t been completed.”

Businesses say the problem was brewing even before the U.S. cut its corporate tax rate from 35 per cent to 21 per cent. They’ve called for a mix of reforms to address challenges from regulatory changes and new carbon prices, to minimum wage hikes and high electricity prices. Uncertainty over the fate of the North American Free Trade Agreement has added to that, prompting the Bank of Canada and others to warn some firms are simply choosing to invest south of the border instead.

Morneau, whose February budget was focused on gender equality, has come under heavy attack from businesses for what they say was a failure to address the changing international tax landscape. The Business Council of Canada — which represents chief executives from dozens of major companies — had pressed the finance minister for an immediate response.

“We’re hoping for a signal that the government is on the case. There’s really no indication in the budget they’re on the case,” John Manley, a former Liberal finance minister and head of the business group, said in an interview. “The first step to solving the problem is admitting that there is one. And they’re not admitting that there is one.”

Canada’s average corporate tax rate is about 27 per cent, three percentage points above that of the world’s advanced economies, according to the Business Council. Morneau has said the Trump administration’s reductions will lower the average American rate to about 26 per cent.