Committee
Consult the user guide
For assistance, please contact us
Consult the user guide
For assistance, please contact us
Add search criteria
Results: 151 - 165 of 270
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
I do want to say this. I know we're here to talk about NAFTA, but that is an important case. We as a government have been very focused on it.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
I was glad to have an opportunity to raise it. What I did say to the foreign minister was that this was an issue of great concern to Canadians, and concern particularly to Canadian businesses.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
There are two questions embedded in that, and let me take them in turn.
When it comes to the labour and environmental chapters, I'm glad to hear Conservative support for our government pushing very hard in these areas. I think that holds real opportunity for Canada. I am very pleased with the progress we've made there in CETA, a deal that is actually going to be provisionally applied in a few weeks.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Hang on. That gives it particular value. It's particularly useful in trade negotiations to refer to a trade deal that is actually in force, not to something that is simply written on a piece of paper.
I'm aware of those provisions that were negotiated in the TPP, and I think they're very interesting. We will also use some of the ideas from the TPP, very much including some of the labour and environmental ideas, which have particular value because there was some U.S. input on them. However, I would point out that the TPP is a deal that this U.S. administration has rejected. We need to be aware and mindful of that.
Also, when it comes to the TPP, we need to realize that embedded in the body of that agreement—and I know you know this very well—is a provision according to which the agreement cannot enter into force. Even if the TPP 11 parties were all to ratify that agreement, it would not enter into force without U.S. ratification. All of our conversations about the TPP need to be based on that fundamental reality.
I do want to say, though, that I was in Manila last week and had very good conversations with many of our TPP 11 partners, including Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia—
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
—Singapore, and Vietnam. We are very pleased to be part of continued discussions among that group. Canada absolutely sees the opportunities in the Asia-Pacific, and we are pursuing them energetically.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
I share those concerns. The softwood lumber issue is absolutely a key issue. It's—
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
It's a priority of mine and of our government. In fact, I was speaking about the issue less than 12 hours ago with some key representatives of the B.C. industry, and as I mentioned, Martin Moen is my partner in crime on this particular file.
We are very engaged with the U.S. on softwood lumber. We want a good deal and we think that is achievable, but we don't want just any deal, and the Americans know that. We want a deal that is good for Canadians.
I think at the moment that the softwood lumber negotiations will continue in parallel with the NAFTA negotiations, as has historically been the case. We are open to other modalities, but for now I think they'll continue in parallel.
Thanks.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Thank you for the question, Kyle.
You're absolutely right that the auto sector, which is so important for your constituency, is important for all of Canada. The concerns of the auto sector, including those of car parts manufacturers like NAPA, and those of labour, are an absolute priority for us in our NAFTA negotiations.
I want to make one other point, because Gerry asked me about softwood lumber and I didn't have enough time to answer. I'll just say quickly on softwood that I do want to highlight what an engaged partner Wilbur Ross has been in those conversations. He has really gotten immersed in the detail of the file, has really been personally involved, and I really appreciate that.
On autos, we are consulting very actively and energetically, and are going to continue those consultations as the negotiations progress. We are talking to the big auto companies. We're talking to the car parts suppliers at multiple levels. As you know, it's a really complicated industry. I'm very pleased that Linda is serving on our council, and also, a really important piece for us is talking to labour. Labour understands the auto parts sector very well and has an important perspective.
One of the incredibly important things that our auto sector brings to the NAFTA conversation and that will be an issue that Canada will keep bringing up at the negotiating table is the extent to which our trade with the United States is really integrated and sophisticated. Flavio Volpe likes to say that we make things together. Don Walker likes to say that too about Magna, right? And that is really the point, that our relationship, particularly in a complex and highly integrated sector like auto parts, is really all about a highly integrated sector that works. One of the things that we are really going to focus on in the negotiations is being aware of the complexity of that economic relationship and ensuring that is reflected in the negotiations. We're going to work hard to make the trade there even easier.
There's something else for which I do want to really thank all the Canadians who work in the auto sector. Randy spoke right at the beginning about the work we have all been doing in reaching out to our partners and colleagues south of the border. That has also been a sector-to-sector outreach, and I think some of the most effective conversations that have been happening to date have been between Canadians and Americans who build things together. People in the auto sector have been particularly effective in having that dialogue and in ensuring that their American partners are fully aware of how important NAFTA is as a foundation for that very effective, integrated economic relationship.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
Thank you very much for those questions.
As you raised dairy, I can't resist asking whether Max Bernier is also with the program here.
Sorry, I couldn't resist.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
I'm sorry, I just couldn't resist.
I was very clear in my speech earlier this morning, in my opening remarks here, and in my answer already that our government supports supply management. I think from the questions here that we are now hearing cross-party consensus on this. What is very important is how we frame this issue, both for our American partners and for Canadians. It's important to remind our American partners that in the dairy trade they already benefit 5:1. It's important to remind them also that while supply management is our system for supporting our dairy producers, they have their own systems for subsidizing and supporting their dairy producers. Again, as I mentioned in response to an earlier question, it's particularly important to underscore that in the Canadian public discourse. Those will be the points that we'll be making, and we're very clear on our position on that.
You asked about container sizes. Again, we're very aware of the value and importance of flexibility there. I would also put that in the category of how important it is for us to cut red tape and make trade easier. Certainly I believe that one of the objectives we share with the U.S. administration is that governments should not be creating unnecessary impediments or frictions that make business more difficult. We really see NAFTA as an opportunity to act and improve on that.
You mentioned the carbon tax. I think this may be one of points on which we have to have a friendly disagreement on both sides of the house.
Have I run out of time?
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
I'm sorry, Tracey, because of the echo in the room I didn't exactly get your last point. Could you repeat the climate change point?
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
I thank you for that question.
Something that our government is very proud to have done is to ratify the outstanding ILO conventions. Labour is very important to us, and those conventions are a very important way for Canada to be part of an international community of commitment to high labour standards. The ratification of those conventions was part of our CETA negotiation process, so the ILO conventions, in our experience already, can be part of a trade discussion.
Certainly, in negotiating with our NAFTA partners, we are going to share with them the value that we believe those conventions have, and the value that they have for all economies.
View Chrystia Freeland Profile
Lib. (ON)
As I said in my remarks, we do really see some opportunity, and it was great to hear that the Conservatives support strong labour protections in trade agreements too—they did; don't laugh, Gerry, it's true—and I see some real opportunity here to raise the bar on labour across North America.
Results: 151 - 165 of 270 | Page: 11 of 18

|<
<
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
>
>|
Export As: XML CSV RSS

For more data options, please see Open Data