International Trade committee  That's a very good point. There are already Canadian businesses doing business with Colombian companies. That trade has been growing in the past five years, as I've demonstrated. The question I have for some of those who have expressed skepticism or opposition to this trade agr

International Trade committee  It would give a tremendous advantage to Canadian companies doing business in that market, as you've explained.

International Trade committee  I would have to answer yes. You say that wages are often lower in these countries. It's true that in some cases, manpower is more widely available. Moreover, that is one of the reasons why certain companies opt to invest in foreign countries. However, it is not the only reason. I

International Trade committee  First of all, I want to make it clear that none of our members expressed opposition to the agreement. Some actively support it, either because of their commercial interests in Colombia, or because they view this country as a potential export market for their product. Other compan

International Trade committee  Each year, as a matter of fact, we ask the majority of our members to identify the countries with which they would like Canada to sign a free trade agreement and develop closer commercial ties. Of course, they generally name countries in which there is a potential to market their

International Trade committee  Do you want me to respond?

International Trade committee  I'm not sure how you define fair trade. However, here is how most Quebec and Canadian companies define trade with foreign companies, whether in Colombia or elsewhere: the two companies involved in the transaction are free to set the terms and conditions they want. Canadian compan

International Trade committee  The manufacturing sector in Quebec and in Canada is currently in the throes of a rather serious crisis. Quebec businesses are looking to develop new export markets in leading sectors like aeronautics and machinery and equipment manufacturing for the mining industry in particular.

International Trade committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair. My comments will echo those of my colleague to my left. First of all, thank you for the opportunity to appear before the committee on this very important hearing. I'll talk a little bit about the current economic context and why this proposed agreement w

International Trade committee  I would say the same thing as David. A few years ago, we talked about the Smart Border Declaration. Some positive things happened six or seven years ago. At the time, there was clear leadership on both sides of the border. In addition, the relationship between the two partners wa

International Trade committee  The comments by my colleagues from the Canadian Trucking Alliance are quite clear in that regard. Many people are involved. It's a complex issue that affects the industry, international trade and the Canada Border Services Agency. We have to work together and adopt a coordinated

International Trade committee  We have to be sure we send a clear signal to the G20 and say that we're going to keep our borders open to trade and that there won't be any recurring protectionism. However, the American industry can sign that declaration, but... The U.S. Congress has considerable legislative aut

International Trade committee  Just to answer your question very quickly, the issue of “buy America” is changing very rapidly. Working with our U.S. counterparts, we have asked for clarifications on how the rules are going to be interpreted. We've asked that of the Congressional Budget Office and the U.S. trad

International Trade committee  I agree with my colleagues that leadership is key to governments making any sort of significant progress on those issues. For your upcoming visit to Washington, one key message I'd like you to take to legislators in the U.S. is that, really, we make things together. When you th

International Trade committee  Bonjour. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you, members of the committee, for the opportunity to testify on behalf of Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters this morning on your study of Canada-U.S. relations. We're glad we're able to provide input to your study. Before I get start