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Trans-Pacific Partnership text won’t be available before election
Government officials say haggling by lawyers from 12 countries delaying release of trade agreement
Canadians won’t be able to see the text of the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal before they vote.
Government officials told CBC News on Wednesday that the exact wording of the full agreement in principle announced Oct. 5 won’t be finalized until next week.
The federal election is next Monday, Oct. 19.
- Ed Fast on The House: TPP text will be released before the election
- Keith Boag: Hillary Clinton’s opposition to the TPP deal might be just ‘talking’
- ANALYSIS | Spin Cycle: Only the Conservatives are free traders, right?
- Trans-Pacific Partnership: How the deal was done
Twelve countries have signed on to the Pacific Rim free trade deal in principle, although it will require a separate ratification process in each country before it takes effect.
In an interview with CBC News Network’s Power & Politics, Canada’s trade minister said the government was pressing the other 11 countries to release “any form” of the text.
Trade Minister Ed Fast told the Vancouver Board of Trade last Thursday that the full text of the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal would be available within days. Now, government officials say it won’t be available until after the election. (CBC News)
“What I did say is that we’re working with our 11 other partners to secure at least a provisional text,” Conservative Ed Fast told CBC’s Rosemary Barton on Wednesday.
“What I’m saying,” Fast said, “I don’t have full control over it but I can tell you we’ve been very, very assertive with our partners explaining to them that Canadians — in the middle of an election — have a right to know what’s in the text.”
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Trans-Pacific Partnership trade talks peak as Canada eyes election timing
‘It’s hard to put out a press release during an election, let alone a 21st century trade agreement’
Pity Ed Fast’s campaign manager in Abbotsford, B.C.
While most MPs running for re-election are focused on campaigning, Stephen Harper’s trade minister is in Maui, Hawaii, this week to see if there’s a Trans-Pacific Partnership deal Canada can sign on to.
It’s an agreement, the prime minister said in June, that’s “essential” for Canada, establishing a basis for trade among not only the 12 Pacific Rim countries at the table, but others who could join later — like China, India or the Philippines.
- Supply management in Canada: Why politicians defend farm marketing boards
- Analysis: ‘Shrewd’ Canada playing long game as TPP talks begin in Maui
A bad deal for Canada — or a deal so bad Canada has to walk away — would be another blow to the Conservatives’ election narrative of sound economic management.
Trade Minister Ed Fast joins the talks Tuesday – and might have to interrupt his election campaigning in September if talks drag on. (Daniel Munoz/Reuters)
Fast appeared cool last week, not rising to the bait of Americans launching their position — a dismantling ofCanada’s marketing board regime for dairy, poultry and eggs — loud and clear in the media.
But as ministerial talks begin Tuesday, Fast faces awkward timing.
Newly enabled by fast-track authority from the U.S. Congress, the Americans and Japanese speak of concluding a deal now, and finalizing by the end of the year, before 2016 elections.
The Harper government might want to stretch final bargaining until its own vote is over — to strengthen its mandate and minimize electoral risks from what unfolds.
Timing not up to Canada
One of the trade minister’s former staff said it would be “next to impossible” for Canada to negotiate during the writ period.
Public opinion in the U.S. is divided over the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal – but U.S. President Barack Obama has fast-track authority to get a deal done sooner rather than later. (Damian Dovarganes/Associated Press)
“It’s hard for a minister to put out a press release during an election campaign, let alone a 21st century trade agreement with 40 per cent of the world’s GDP,” said Adam Taylor, now with Ensight Canada’s international trade practice.
“I think people would never expect a democratic country in the middle of an election to come to the table to negotiate in a meaningful way.”
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Agriculture Issues Just the Tip of the TPP Iceberg
Agriculture Issues Just the Tip of the TPP Iceberg
Trade deal could slam Canadians with rising consumer, health care and education costs
The Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP), a proposed trade agreement that encompasses nearly 40 per cent of world GDP, heads to Hawaii later this month for ministerial-level negotiations. According to media reports, this may be the final round of talks, with countries expected to address the remaining contentious issues with their “best offers” in the hope that an agreement can be reached. Canadian coverage of the TPP has centred primarily on U.S. demands for changes to longstanding agricultural market safeguards.
With a national election a few months away, the prospect of overhauling some of Canada’s biggest business sectors has politicians from all parties waffling on the agreement. Canadian International Trade Minister Ed Fast, who will lead the Canadian delegation, maintains that the government has not agreed to dismantle supply management protections and that it will only enter into an agreement if the deal is in the best interests of the country. The opposition parties are similarly hesitant to stake out positions on key issues, noting that they cannot judge the TPP until it is concluded and publicly released.
While the agricultural issues may dominate debate, it is only one unresolved issue of many. Indeed, the concerns associated with the agreement go far beyond the supply of products such as milk and chickens.
Meddles with copyright
First, a recently leaked version of the intellectual property chapter revealed that Canada would have to make significant changes to its copyright and patent rules. The TPP requires Canada to extend the term of copyright to life of the author plus an additional 70 years. The law is currently set at life of the author plus 50 years, which meets the international standard found in the Berne Convention.
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