Canada Closes On Free Trade Agreement With EU
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The Canadian government could sign a free-trade agreement(FTA) with the European Union by the end of the year, said the country’s High Commissioner to the UK on Sunday during an interview on CTV’s “Question Period” television show.
The Canadian government could sign a free-trade agreement(FTA) with the European Union by the end of the year, said the country’s High Commissioner to the UK on Sunday during an interview on CTV’s “Question Period” television show.
Gordon Campbell, who was also once the premier of British Columbia, told CTV that the agreement could potentially generate up to $12 billion for the Canadian economy, with up to 80,000 new jobs expected to be created in the process.
[quote]”If you want to have the additional increase in our economy, if you want to create opportunities in Canada, it comes from trade,” said Campbell, while noting that trade made up 60 percent of his nation’s economic output.[/quote]“The major issues (with the free-trade agreement) are now dealt with,” added Campbell. “We’ve got some very intense negotiations going on, but I think by the end of the year we will have a deal ready for consideration,” he said.
The EU is presently Canada’s second-largest trading partner behind the US, with a 10.5 percent share of the country’s total external trade. In 2010, Canada exported $26.32 billion of goods to the EU, with $34.83 billion worth of goods going in the opposite direction.
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While the US still dominates Canada’s trade relations, an additional FTA with EU would only spell positive news for the Canadian economy, said Campbell.
[quote]“Europe is an enormous marketplace for us. It’s a $17 trillion economy and, candidly, if Canada can successfully conclude the CEFTA (Canada-Europe Free Trade Association) trade agreement, we will be the only country in the world with that has deals with both United States and Europe,” noted Campbell.[/quote]But, according to CTV, a number of municipalities across the country have been caught unaware by the free-trade agreement, with some municipalities threatening to opt out of the scheme.
Some unions have also claimed that CEFTA agreement could cost between 30,000-150,000 Canadian jobs, especially as the EU struggles to continue its own debt crisis.
But Campbell dismiss these suggestions, by insisting that the Canadian economy was dependent on trade to survive, while assuring Canadians that all the provinces and municipalities would be involved in the decision process.
“We’re not having a thousand community negotiations,” Campbell said, suggesting the deal will only be signed if it has a net benefit to Canadians.
[quote]”The negotiations will be presented both to the European Union and to Canada, and people will have to decide whether it’s the right deal for Canada at the time,” he said.[/quote]
