Take Action Against Canada -EU Deal

As reported in the Globe and Mail on September 18, "Canadian and European officials say they plan to begin negotiating a massive agreement to integrate Canada's economy with the 27 nations of the European Union, with preliminary talks to be launched at an Oct. 17 summit in Montreal three days after the federal election." The article continues, "...a senior EU official involved in the talks described (them) as 'deep economic integration negotiations.'”

DEAL WOULD EXCEED SCOPE OF NAFTA

The article states, "The proposed pact would far exceed the scope of older agreements such as NAFTA by encompassing not only unrestricted trade in goods, services and investment and the removal of tariffs, but also the free movement of skilled people and an open market in government services and procurement – which would require that Canadian governments allow European companies to bid as equals on government contracts for both goods and services and end the favouring of local or national providers of public-sector services."

TEXT OF THE DEAL WON'T BE RELEASED DURING THE ELECTION

The Globe reports, “Because of the election, Mr. Harper appears to have decided not to unveil a full text of the proposed agreement, but instead to use the summit to inaugurate the trade talks with the launch of a 'scoping exercise' that will quickly set the goals of the pact and lead to formal 'comprehensive trade and investment negotiations' to begin in 'early 2009,' according to communications between senior Canadian and European officials examined by The Globe and Mail…The two governments have completed a detailed study of the proposed agreement that will be unveiled shortly after the election, should the Conservatives win. Both Ottawa and Brussels have had staff work on a draft text for a deal they had hoped would be introduced at a Canada-EU summit, to be attended by French President Nicolas Sarkozy, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso and Mr. Harper in Montreal on Oct. 17.”

BIG BUSINESS BACKS THE DEAL

While the public has not been allowed to see the study or the draft text, apparently large corporations have. The article notes, "Proponents, including all of Canada's major business-lobby organizations, are in favour of the deal..."

TAKE ACTON

E-mail Prime Minister Stephen Harper at pm@pm.gc.ca today and demand that the full text of the proposed agreement and the detailed study of it be released immediately. You can also cc Stephane Dion, Liberal Party of Canada,Dion.S@parl.gc.ca; Jack Layton, New Democratic Party of Canada, Layton.J@parl.gc.ca; Gilles Duceppe, Bloc Québécois,Duceppe.G@parl.gc.ca; Elizabeth May, Green Party of Canada, leader@greenparty.ca.

SAMPLE LETTER 

Prime Minister,

 I join with the Council of Canadians in the demand that you immediately release the full text of the proposed Canada-EU deep economic integration agreement and the detailed study of it so that the Canadian public is able to make as informed a choice as possible at the polls on Tuesday October 14.  

 Given the recent news that a US investor is suing Canada under NAFTA for violations it claims have prevented it from opening more private health care clinics in B.C., a new and even wider international agreement with similar or greater powers would only worsen the current threat to Canada’s public health care system.  

 In the 2006 election, you ran on a campaign of accountability.  Part of that campaign included a promise that, "significant international treaties will be submitted for votes in Parliament." How accountable is it of you not to release the draft text of a major trade agreement that reportedly rivals NAFTA in scope because of the election? 

(your name)