Canada closer to locking down EU free trade deal

February 29, 2016 | Last updated on February 29, 2016
2 min read

The federal government now expects the Canada-EU free trade agreement (CETA) to take effect next year, after completing a legal review of the deal.

In a statement, International Trade Minister Chrystia Freeland says the deal has been modified to allow for a permanent dispute-settlement tribunal and an appeal system, among other measures. “We have responded to Canadians, EU citizens and businesses with a fairer, more transparent system.” She’s now confident the agreement will be signed this year.

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According to a release by the European Commission, “The negotiations on a free trade deal between the European Union and Canada were concluded in 2014 with a reformed investment dispute settlement system [that included] clear and unambiguous investment protection standards.”

And now, “Following the legal revision of the text, the agreement goes even further: all the main elements of the EU’s new approach on investment, as outlined in the EU’s TTIP proposal of November 2015 and contained in the recently concluded EU-Vietnam free trade agreement, have been included in the finalized CETA text.”

The release adds, “This represents a clear break from the old Investor to State Dispute Settlement approach, and demonstrates the shared determination of the EU and Canada to replace the current system with a new dispute settlement mechanism and move toward a permanent multilateral investment court.”

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Along with these changes, says the release, “CETA will now offer EU firms better business opportunities in Canada and support jobs, by making business between the EU and Canada easier. The deal will remove 99% of customs duties, leading to tariff savings for EU exporters of around 470 million euro a year for industrial goods.” Click here for more.

This announcement marks a significant milestone for the trade deal, which has been in the works between Canada and the 28-member European Union for years. Negotiations began in 2009.