Madam Speaker, I am just concluding on the matter of the environmental sector. As I said, there is provision in the side environmental agreement for prospective environmental protection, and it is detailed in the side agreement, but that will require as well ongoing oversight in order to ensure that the protective framework, the remedial framework, the objective sought by way of economic protection comport not only with the understandings and undertakings in that side agreement but indeed with respect to the international economic and environmental protections to which Canada and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan respectively have committed themselves to.
This brings me now to the labour front. With respect to the labour front and again the side labour agreement, and I may spend a little more time on this one, the labour agreement commits both parties to protect, enhance and enforce basic workers' rights, to strengthen cooperation on labour matters, and to build on their respective international labour commitments.
In particular in that regard the labour agreement requires both parties to ensure that their laws respect the 1998 ILO declaration on fundamental principles and rights at work, which covers freedom of association, the right to collective bargaining, the abolition of child labour, the elimination of forced or compulsory labour, and the elimination of occupational discrimination as well as the International Labour Organization's decent work agenda.
I mention this because earlier the member for Burnaby—New Westminster addressed some of those concerns that fall within the area of labour rights that again will require our own oversight and accountability in that regard.
I might add that similarly oversight will be required with respect to this particular frame of understandings and undertakings where under the heading of obligations with respect to the memorandum of agreement on labour cooperation between Canada and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, the obligations include providing protections for occupational health and safety, acceptable minimum employment standards such as minimum wage and overtime pay, compensation for occupational illnesses or injuries and non-discrimination in respect of working conditions for migrant workers.
The labour agreement also provides for an open and robust complaint and dispute resolution process. As well, the labour agreement, if in fact the understanding and undertakings will be appropriately adhered to and with the necessary accountability that must be involved, could serve to enhance and maintain Canada's good reputation in Jordan at the same time as Canada promotes a high standard for the protection of workers' rights, and parenthetically I would add women's rights as well.
I would like to say, because sometimes reference has been made to the provincial and territorial implications or obligations in this regard, that it should be pointed out that the provinces and territories are not bound by the obligations of the labour agreement unless they choose to implement the agreement within their territory. Provinces and territories will be subject to dispute settlement including the imposition of monetary assessments only if they sign a declaration indicating their acceptance of these obligations.
Admittedly the labour agreement does commit Canada to use its efforts to persuade provinces and territories to agree to be added to the declaration, but in fact the provinces and territories do not themselves have to agree to do this.
Let me move more quickly now to a close and speak to the issue of the geopolitical front. Such a free trade agreement can promote and enhance better relations not only between Canada and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in their bilateral economic relationship but also with Israel and the Palestinian authority.
There is, and it is not always appreciated, an intersecting and interlocking framework of agreement and set of economic relations in this regard among Canada, the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, the Palestinian Authority and Israel.
It may well be that those kinds of intersecting, interlocking relationships, which can include as well provisions for joint industrial parks and the like, can help presage the development of more mutually amicable political relationships, so that we do not only have a formal treaty with respect to the participating countries but we do enhance matters of the political, diplomatic and juridical as well as economic relationships.
On the bilateral front, this can enhance the development of Canada-Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan relationships which are deemed at this point to be excellent, but hopefully, as has been indicated by those involved in this and in my own discussions with the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan leadership, this can presage developing cooperation in areas such as technology, law, education, nuclear, economic development and the like. These are areas that they have indicated to us are things where Canada can play a role in the enhancement of an overall bilateral relationship of which the Canada-Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan bilateral free trade agreement will be an important component, but it will be a kind of standing invitation for the enhancement of the relationship in a multiplicity of sectors such as I have referenced.
Finally, on the multilateral front, the preamble speaks also to the promotion and protection of democracy, human rights and cultural diversity, as well as of course for the protection of the environment and workers' rights in the side agreements.
We have an excellent agreement on paper. The question is, how does this agreement actually operate in practice? There is always a distinction between law on the books and law in action. There is a distinction between an agreement on the books and an agreement in action. What happens in fact to environmental protection on the ground? What happens in fact to workers' rights on the ground?
We can have comprehensive side agreements in matters of the environment, in matters of workers' rights, but what will be needed will be the necessary cooperation, involvement, oversight and accountability in that regard to ensure that that which is expected of this agreement, particularly in the areas of human rights and all its configurations, will in fact be secured, enhanced and protected by this agreement.