Should Canada Ratify CETA?

CCPA Submission to the Parliamentary Committee on International Trade
Author(s): 
November 30, 2016
Download
165.31 KB11 pages

CETA is much more than a trade deal. It is therefore not enough to just to assess which export sectors stand to gain and lose from EU-Canada tariff elimination. This submission flags some of CETA's more problematic chapters and provisions—on investment protection, the liberalization of public services, threats to environmental protection rules, limits to local government procurement, etc.—in order to help the parliamentary trade committee and Canadians in their deliberations on the agreement.

With the likely rejection in Europe of a CETA-like agreement with the United States, much of European public opinion is now squarely focused against this deal with Canada. Moves by the EU and Canadian parliaments to rush through ratifying legislation are unlikely to convince anyone that CETA is truly in their best interests. Given this sensitive political context, particularly in light of the rise of authoritarian populist parties in several European countries, this submission argues the agreement must be changed, or Canada risks seeing the deal falter in the EU member state ratification process.

Offices: