Former federal environment and industry minister Jim Prentice says the US and Canada are starting to take their close trading relationship for granted.
He says the two are becoming distracted by the debate over the Keystone XL oil sands pipeline and losing sight of the bigger picture.
Prentice made the comments in a speech to the Canadian Defence and Foreign Affairs institute in Calgary.
He says the two countries need to focus on broader issues, like environmental policies, and harmonizing their transportation and fuel rules.
He says they should move past the pipeline, which he says is in both countries’ national interest.
