Trade & Integration Campaign Questions

“Would your party withdraw from the SPP discussions and commit to meaningful consultation with civil society for all future North American and international trade agreements?”
87% of Canadians agree that Canada should maintain the ability to set its own independent environmental, health and safety standards, even if this might reduce cross-border trade opportunities with the United States. And yet the government is committed to an SPP policy of regulatory harmonization in the areas of consumer product safety, food and drugs, and the environment.

Furthermore, 86% of Canadians agree that the Security and Prosperity Partnership agreement should be debated and submitted to a vote in Parliament. Yet four years later, the debate is nowhere to be seen.

“Will your party call for the renegotiation of NAFTA, specifically with aim of removing the proportionality clause?”
For years, we have been told that globalization and free trade are inevitable, and that the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) would bring jobs and prosperity to Canadians. But in the aftermath of the softwood lumber decision, even former supporters of free trade are arguing that NAFTA isn’t working for Canada. Some have called for forceful retaliation against the U.S., while others have suggested that we should get out of NAFTA – before it’s too late.

The bottom line is: NAFTA is a bad deal for Canada. It undermines democracy, strips Canada of control over our energy resources, threatens to put water up for sale, and endangers health care and other public services. We want a trade system that protects our social safety net, jobs and natural resources.