<aside> 🇺🇸 Canada - US Trade
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<aside> 🌎 Canada - US Country Relations
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<aside> 🇪🇺 Canada - EU Trade
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<aside> 🌎 Canada - EU Country Relations
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CETA, or Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement, is a trade agreement between Canada and the European Union. This agreement was first signed on October 30, 2016, and has been ratified by Canada and sixteen member states of the E.U. Overall, the agreement has been well-received, with the Government of Canada has touted it as being beneficial to the Canadian economy. As of December 2020, Austria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, and the UK have all ratified CETA.
Jean-Claude Juncker, Justin Trudeau and Donald Tusk after the CETA signing ceremony.
Currently, CETA is mostly implemented, as NAFTA renegotiations with the United States and Mexico took up a lot of Foreign Affairs Canada’s devotion of time, leading to a very slow start for CETA in Canada. On the other side of the Agreement, European businesses have taken full advantage of the new deal, although there was opposition to CETA in Belgium.
As per Belgian law, all five regional governments must approve a bill, and, in this case, the Walloon government (of Wallonia) did not approve of CETA, which pushed the deal to the brink of collapse. According to an article by The Guardian, Paul Magnette, Wallonia's minister-president, was concerned about opening their agriculture sector to Canadian competition. Magnette had also raised objections to a proposed court system for settling disputes between foreign investors and governments.
In order to quell this, the Belgian government proposed a four-page document outlining concessions that would be made in order to provide assurance to the Walloon government that they would not be negatively affected by CETA. One concession that Wallonia won was that Belgium would be able to go to the European court of justice to determine whether a system of investor-state tribunals were compatible with EU law. The four-page document contains a guarantee that the Belgian government will assess the socio-economic and environmental impact of CETA.
In Canada, the New Democratic Party (NDP) and the Green Party, both opposed CETA, claiming that it was rushed. They also penned a letter to the French government, asking them to delay the approval of the trade agreement.
Trade in goods: CETA eliminates tariffs and reduces barriers for virtually all sectors and aspects of Canada-EU trade. Before this agreement, only 25% of EU tariff lines on Canadian goods were duty-free. With CETA, 98% of EU tariff lines are now duty-free for Canadian goods.
Rules of origin: Canadian exporters have clear and favourable rules that consider Canada’s supply chains to determine which products are considered originating and therefore eligible for preferential tariff treatment.
Customs and trade facilitation: Canada and the EU are working to keep customs procedures simple, effective, clear and predictable. This helps reduce processing times at the border and makes it much easier to move goods between countries.
Regulatory cooperation and conformity assessment: CETA helps avoid unnecessary or discriminatory regulatory requirements. Canadian and EU regulators are working together to create regulatory measures that make it easier for Canadians to do business in the EU.
Government procurement: Canadian companies can bid on opportunities at all levels of government in the EU, opening potential businesses estimated at $3.3 trillion annually.
Trade in services and labour mobility: CETA provides Canadian service providers with more business opportunities in the EU and makes it easier for certain skilled professionals to work temporarily in the EU.
Investment: Investment provisions in CETA are designed to give investors greater certainty, stability and protection for their investments and to provide access to an independent dispute resolution mechanism.
Sustainable development, labour and the environment: CETA includes clear commitments to uphold Canada’s high standards and not to undermine them for commercial gain. Clear language confirms the right to regulate for all levels of government.