Freeland won't commit yet to Feb. 4 TPP signing
Canada's international trade minister says her government hasn't decided whether it will participate in an expected signing ceremony for the Trans-Pacific Partnership in Auckland, New Zealand early next month.
"We are aware that some of the countries are talking about a signing in New Zealand. Canada hasn't yet taken a decision," Chrystia Freeland told reporters in Vancouver Tuesday.
Freeland's holding a series of cross-Canada consultations about the 12-country Pacific Rim trade agreement.
Negotiations concluded Oct. 5 during Canada's federal election campaign, when then-prime minister Stephen Harper heralded the TPP as being "without any doubt whatsoever
in the best interests of the Canadian economy.'
The trade minister, along with the rest of Justin Trudeau's government, have taken considerable pains to emphasize their party's openness to international trade deals like TPP. But they've stopped short of endorsing it fully, saying they have a lot to learn first about the contents and implications of
the 6,000-page deal.
While her predecessor, Ed Fast, actively promoted the deal he worked to negotiate, Freeland characterized herself this week as being in "listening mode." She met Alberta farm groups Monday, other concerned stakeholders in Vancouver Tuesday and has more consultations set for Montreal and the Toronto area over the next few days.
This is a very big, complex agreement. I've heard from some stakeholders that they're only now starting to digest it and starting to understand which parts of it will be relevant to them," she said, admitting to reporters in Vancouver that her stakeholder discussions Tuesday revealed some things that were news to both her and her officials.
She declined to specify exactly what.
"I am working hard on it myself, but I do think it's important for Canadians to understand that we are serious about the consultation process."
At least six countries, including the largest economies, United States and Japan, must ratify the deal in order for it to come into force at the end of the two-year period — a threshold Freeland characterized as a "Plan B" should some of the smaller countries find the final text politically unpalatable and drop out.
Even if Canada does not attend this ceremony, it could sign on and ratify at a later date, before the deal takes hold.
Asked when her government might bring forward a bill for Canada's ratification, Freeland first paused, and then said "we're very much not there yet."
However, she said when Parliament resumes she will ask the Commons trade committee, once it is formed, to make a "comprehensive cross-country study" of the TPP a priority.
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Chrystia Freeland won't commit yet to Feb. 4 TPP signing - Politics - CBC News
