CPTPP: Another bad deal negotiated behind closed doors . . .

CPTPP: Another bad deal negotiated behind closed doors . . .

Postby Oscar » Thu Jun 14, 2018 3:11 pm

CPTPP legislation wrong move at wrong time: Unifor

[ https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/c ... 92521.html ]

June 14, 2018

TORONTO, June 14, 2018 /CNW/ - The federal government's decision to table legislation on the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) is a rushed over-reaction to current trade conditions says Unifor.

"The federal government signed the CPTPP in haste, in part to show the Trump administration that Canada has other trading options, but I believe pushing for a quick ratification now will actually weaken our bargaining position in the escalating trade war with the U.S.," said Unifor National President Jerry Dias.

The government accelerated the tabling of legislation in the House of Commons to ratify the CPTPP, foregoing the standard 21 sitting days after first making the full text available.

The 11-nation trade agreement, signed in March 2018, includes conditions that Canada has firmly opposed in the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) renegotiations, including an expansion of Canada's trade imbalance and the acceleration of foreign auto imports into the Canadian market.

"International trade agreements need to include some measure of consistency with our trading partners," said Dias. "Implementing the CPTPP, in its current form, would reflect an incoherent and disjointed trade policy that will open Canada up to future NAFTA concessions."

Unifor maintains that proceeding with the CPTPP is the wrong move at a time when workers in Canada's core export industries are facing unprecedented economic uncertainty, most notably in the auto, steel, aluminum and forest-products industries. For these industries and associated supply-chains, the North American market is of paramount importance.

"There is still an opportunity to change course or, at the very least, delay implementation until there is clarity in the rules governing trade in North America," Dias said. "The risks and uncertainty that CPTPP rules pose for auto, dairy, culture and other major industries, along with an entrenched investor-state dispute system, far outweigh any stated benefit."

Unifor is Canada's largest union in the private sector, representing 315,000 workers in every major area of the economy. The union advocates for all working people and their rights, fights for equality and social justice in Canada and abroad, and strives to create progressive change for a better future.

SOURCE Unifor

For further information: please contact
Unifor Communications Representative Kathleen O'Keefe at kathleen.okeefe@unifor.org or 416-896-3303 (cell).

Related Links

[ http://www.unifor.org ]
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Re: CPTPP: Unifor says wrong move at wrong time . . . .

Postby Oscar » Thu Jun 14, 2018 5:13 pm

The CPTPP Trade Deal Will Cost Canada Tens of Thousands of Jobs

[ http://www.ndp.ca/news/ndp-cptpp-trade- ... sands-jobs ]

June 14th, 2018

The implementing legislation for the Trans-Pacific Partnership was tabled today despite overwhelming evidence that this trade deal is a betrayal to Canadian workers, the manufacturing sector, and our supply management system. The CPTPP will put 58 000 Canadian jobs at risk and jeopardize both the auto industry and supply managed sectors. The NDP urges the Liberal government to put workers first during this difficult time and not accept this trade deal, which has a weak economic forecast according to the government’s own impact analysis.

“If this deal is implemented, tens of thousands of Canadian jobs will be at risk. When negotiating trade deals, the Liberals cannot sacrifice good paying jobs in the Canadian auto industry and farmers in supply managed sectors, such as dairy, poultry, and eggs,” said Tracey Ramsey, the NDP’s International Trade Critic.

Despite the “progressive” label in the name of the deal, the CPTPP has no gender chapter, weak labour provisions, no Indigenous consent, no environmental protections, and the weakest cultural language ever in a trade agreement. The deal also has low environmental standards, which will further prevent Canada from meeting our climate change commitments, and regressive investor-state dispute settlement provisions, which significantly undermine Canada’s sovereignty and its ability to regulate in the public interest.

“The Liberals negotiated the CPTPP behind closed doors. Piece by piece, Canadians have learned the extent of the problems with this deal. The NDP urges the Liberals to stand up for Canadian workers and refuse trade deals that will cost our country tens of thousands of jobs. Simply put, the CPTPP is a bad deal for Canada,” said Karine Trudel, NDP Deputy International Trade Critic.
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Re: CPTPP: Another bad deal negotiated behind closed doors .

Postby Oscar » Fri Jun 15, 2018 4:55 pm

Trudeau government introduces Bill C-79, legislation to ratify the Trans-Pacific Partnership

[ https://canadians.org/blog/trudeau-gove ... artnership ]

June 15, 2018 - 10:10 am

(PHOTO: Trade Minister François-Philippe Champagne signed the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership in Santiago, Chile on March 8, 2018.)


The Trudeau government has introduced Bill C-79, legislation to implement the so-called 'comprehensive and progressive' Trans-Pacific Partnership.

Maude Barlow says, "It may be rebranded, but it’s the same deal which an overwhelming majority – almost all Canadians consulted – said they opposed.”

NDP trade critic Tracey Ramsey highlights, "There is no gender chapter, there is no consent from the Aboriginal people in Canada. The labour provisions themselves have been called toothless, they've been called weak. The agreement doesn't even use the word 'climate change' – that's how environmentally weak it is."

And Unifor president Jerry Dias comments, "The risks and uncertainty that CPTPP rules pose for auto, dairy, culture and other major industries, along with an entrenched investor-state dispute system, far outweigh any stated benefit."

The CBC reports, "The agreement will enter into force 60 days after at least six of the partner countries complete their respective ratification procedures."

Mexico ratified the CPTPP in late-April, the first signatory country to do so.

The Japan Times reported earlier this week, "The Diet approved a bill Wednesday [June 13] to ratify the [CPTPP]. The bill was adopted at a plenary session of the Upper House by a majority vote... The Lower House passed the bill in May. ...In order to ratify the pact, Japan also needs to enact TPP-related legislation, which cleared the Lower House last month and includes measures to support the domestic agricultural sector and reinforce the protection of intellectual property rights."

The remaining countries in the CPTPP are Australia, Brunei, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam.

Our key reasons for our opposition to the CPTPP can be read here:
[ https://canadians.org/blog/council-call ... artnership ]

Brent Patterson's blog
Political Director of the Council of Canadians
[ https://canadians.org/blogs/brent-patterson ]
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