Former Canadian ambassador to the United States Frank McKenna warns that Canada’s competitiveness is in a precarious position as the U.S. has moved to ramp up investment at home.

“The United States changed their competitive position. We haven’t. So we have reduced our competitive advantage,” Frank McKenna, deputy chairman with TD Bank, told BNN Bloomberg in an interview Friday.

“It’s almost impossible now to get capital investment into the energy sector in Canada because of pipeline constraints, and also because of regulatory constraints.”

McKenna’s comments come amid a growing chorus of business leaders and experts who have sounded the alarm on Canada’s global competitiveness amid aggressive U.S. tax cuts, as well as uncertainty over trade and regulatory policy.

The Conference Board of Canada released a report earlier this week that found business confidence in the country slumped to its lowest level in 18 months in the latest quarter.

McKenna added that capital is moving to other countries “where it’s easier to get stuff done.”