Despite the social and political controversy of John A. Macdonald’s “national policy,” one can not deny the economic advancements made to Canada's development through its establishment. Established in 1879, his national policy promoted the creation of an east to west economy to answer to the nation’s recession by way of a higher tariff on imported goods, settlement in the west and the creation of a transcontinental railway,Though John A. Macdonald’s national policy may not have achieved its goal of uniting the nation socially or politically, the economic impact of the high protective tariffs, the Canadian Pacific railway and the settlement of the west helped Canada develop as an independent nation, ready to take on the 20th century. John A. Macdonald and his conservative party brought forth a high protective tariff system for foreign goods coming into Canada. This came with the hopes of promoting national manufacturing and growing the industrial sector, a plan which suggested that all …show more content…
The Canadian Pacific Railway offered just that. Before the construction of the railway, traveling to the west would require a long journey using steamboats and wagons, or a trip through the United States where Canadians were often persuaded to settle. This railway would not only help to unite the new nation, but also provide Canada with some security of avoiding potential annexation from the United States whilst also becoming more valuable to the British Empire by helping complete a route to Asia through British territory. Although an expensive endeavor, the railway which had already been promised to British Columbia, secured Canada’s west, opened the possibility for more western settlement, and allowed Canada to hold its ground with the United States as its own great