As autoworkers and dairy farmers protest a huge potential trade deal they say will cost them jobs, 麻豆影视 has learned that the aerospace and medical device industries stand to benefit.
Canada has tentatively secured the elimination of tariffs on all aerospace exports, like planes and engines, and medical devices such as MRI machines and dental equipment, according to sources close to the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations.
That鈥檚 in addition to the removal of tariffs on metals and minerals, petroleum products, potash, steel, chemicals, plastics and industrial machinery, which CTV reported Wednesday.
The TPP is currently being negotiated by representatives of 12 Pacific Rim countries, including Canada, Japan, the U.S. and Australia, who are meeting this week in Atlanta, Ga.
Unifor, a union that represents many Canadian autoworkers, is concerned that a rumoured easing of the 鈥渞ules-of-origin requirements,鈥� would allow countries like Japan to export vehicles to North America with fewer Canadian-made auto parts.
Unifor national president Jerry Dias said Canada鈥檚 auto industry will take a 鈥渞eal beating鈥� if the TPP deal is inked and the union estimates that 26,000 Canadian auto sector jobs could be lost.
On Tuesday, dairy farmers staged a protest on Parliament Hill to draw attention to their worry that the deal could affect the 鈥渟upply management鈥� system, making it cheaper for foreign dairy producers like New Zealand to sell their products in Canada.
At a campaign stop in Iqaluit on Wednesday, NDP Leader Tom Mulcair said he鈥檚 鈥渧ery worried鈥� about what Prime Minister Stephen Harper is willing to put on the trade table.
鈥淚 would take to the table a strong position to defend our supply-management system in its entirety and anybody else who wants to talk about that, we鈥檒l start talking about their subsidies. But Mr. Harper seems to only feel faint any time it comes to defending our system,鈥� Mulcair said.
Meanwhile, at an event in Toronto, Finance Minister Joe Oliver reiterated the Conservative government鈥檚 pledge that Canada 鈥渨ill not sign on, unless the deal is good for Canadians.鈥�
At an event in Surrey, B.C., Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau said Canadians need to know the government is negotiating in a way that is going to 鈥渆nhance Canadian opportunities and growth, while protecting our interests.鈥�
Mark Warner, a lawyer who specializes in international business and regulatory law, told CTV鈥檚 News Channel that the TPP deal could be a 鈥渨in鈥� for Canadian consumers of milk and cheese
Warner also said the Canadian auto sector鈥檚 decline in recent decades is due to 鈥渃hanges in the auto industry itself鈥� and that arguing about the percentage of domestic auto parts in the rules-of-origin requirement doesn鈥檛 help.
鈥淭he question you have to ask is, well why didn鈥檛 the 60 per cent level in NAFTA save (the industry),鈥� Warner said. 鈥淪o clearly that鈥檚 not the issue.鈥�
While the TPP negotiations could fall through like they did back in July, Warner believes that 鈥渢here is a willingness to do a deal鈥� this week, given that U.S. President Barack Obama has a narrow window to get the deal passed this fall in Congress before the 2016 presidential campaign gets underway in earnest.
鈥淐anada will probably have to make some concessions, either on auto parts or on agriculture,鈥� Warner said. 鈥淎nd depending on how much we鈥檙e prepared to give on one, will probably dictate how much we have to give on the other.鈥�
With a report from 麻豆影视 Parliamentary Correspondent Richard Madan
