International Trade Committee on Nov. 17th, 2025

[Linda Lapointe, Liberal, Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, QC]

Thank you.

We've heard from various witnesses. I gather that, by using trade delegations, we can actually open up our markets more. So we should focus on these measures.

Is that right?

[Sara Wilshaw]

I apologize. I didn't have the opportunity to hear the simultaneous interpretation.

I believe that you were asking whether businesses might be interested in our missions. Yes, they are.

[Linda Lapointe, Liberal, Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, QC]

Thank you, Ms. Wilshaw.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

We have a few minutes left.

Do any of the committee members have a burning question, since we have our wonderful guests here with an immense amount of knowledge?

Go ahead, Mr. McKenzie.

[David McKenzie, Conservative, Calgary Signal Hill, AB]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

We have an embassy in Washington and 15 consulates across the United States. Do you receive feedback from them as to their reactions to the current trade situation between Canada and the U.S.? What would the nature of that be?

[Sara Wilshaw]

We get reports back on the outreach of those consulates general, in particular, and how they engage with folks on the ground. There is a lot of advocacy going on. I think that may be what the member is referring to.

Obviously, our teams, including the consuls general, the senior trade commissioners and the other employees in those missions, would be out regularly engaging with U.S. businesses, with U.S. chambers and with local politicians to try to make the case for trade with Canada and explain the benefits they have enjoyed over the years in working with Canada in trade investment.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

Thank you.

Go ahead, Mr. Naqvi.

[Yasir Naqvi, Liberal, Ottawa Centre, ON]

Thank you, Chair.

My question is about the great privilege of travelling in different parts of the world on behalf of our country and our government, and our really impressive trade commissioners talking to companies. There's a set of companies that know the trade commissioner service really well and brag about the access and service they get, but then there are many other businesses that have no idea about the service.

How do we rectify this? How do we get more companies, especially small and mid-sized companies in Canada, learning about the trade service and using the service available to them?

[Sara Wilshaw]

I wish more folks knew about the service that's available to them. I heard recently from a private service provider who makes introductions that they were charging between $12,000 and $15,000 to do what the trade commissioner service does for free, which was a little distressing.

That was one of the things we noticed before. We have been trying really hard through our social media campaign and through many of the contacts I mentioned in the previous question to reach out and to let people know that we are there. We work with EDC, which also has thousands of clients. We have around 50,000 to 60,000 who now receive a newsletter from us regularly.

We are trying to extend that reach as much as possible, but we certainly welcome any other outreach we can do. I should mention that we also have regional offices all across the country. In 2018, these were invested in precisely for this effort to help people reach us.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

We have Mr. Savard-Tremblay for a brief question.

[Simon-Pierre Savard-Tremblay, Bloc, Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot—Acton, QC]

My question can be answered with a yes or no.

Again, in order to clarify Canada's position in these negotiations, I would like to know whether the three gaps in the supply management system agreements meet the definition of “sacrifice”.

[Aaron Fowler]

Thank you for your question.

I wouldn't use that word. I think that the market access provisions for supply‑managed products here in Canada lay the foundation for a comprehensive and global free trade agreement that greatly benefits the Canadian economy. The market access for supply‑managed products is a fairly small portion of the Canadian market, as was the case during the negotiations.

The Canadian market has expanded since those years. I would also say that the impact on the domestic industry has diminished compared to the access provisions included in the agreement.

There are indeed provisions that affect the sector. Is it a sacrifice? I wouldn't use that word.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

Thank you very much.

Thank you to our wonderful witnesses for sharing all of that knowledge with us and giving us a better understanding of how GAC works and how you carry out your responsibilities.

We will suspend the meeting while we get our witnesses checked out.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

I'm calling this meeting back to order.

With us this session, we have, from the Coalition for the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, Marie-Julie Desrochers, executive director, and Hélène Messier, French-speaking co-chair. From Innovative Medicines Canada, we have Bettina Hamelin, president and chief executive officer. From MRC de Thérèse-De Blainville, we have Kamal El-Batal, general director. They are all appearing by video conference. They all have been sound-checked, and we think everything will work fine.

We will start with opening remarks of no more than five minutes, please. If you see me raise my hand, please stop speaking so that members can get around to asking you questions.

Ms. Desrochers, I open the floor for you, please.

[Marie-Julie Desrochers, Executive Director, Coalition for the Diversity of Cultural Expressions]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

I am the executive director of the Coalition for the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, and I am here today with Hélène Messier, the coalition's francophone co-chair, who is also the CEO of the Association québécoise de la production médiatique.

As we have simultaneous interpretation, I will speak in French, but it is important for me to emphasize the pan-Canadian nature of our organization.

For more than 25 years, the Coalition for the Diversity of Cultural Expressions has carried and amplified the English and French-speaking voices of Canada’s cultural sector. We represent more than 350,000 creators and artists, as well as over 3,000 cultural enterprises in the audiovisual, music, book, visual arts, digital arts and performing arts sectors across the country.

Our core mission is to ensure that cultural goods and services are excluded from international trade agreements, so that Canada retains the ability to adopt policies that support its culture.

Our work is grounded in the 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. The convention states, and I quote, “cultural activities, goods and services have both an economic and a cultural nature, because they convey identities, values and meanings, and must therefore not be treated as solely having commercial value”. The convention further recognizes “the sovereign rights of States to maintain, adopt and implement policies and measures that they deem appropriate for the protection and promotion of the diversity of cultural expressions on their territory”. Canada was the first country to ratify this convention and has since been recognized as a leader in its implementation.

It is in that same spirit that a cultural exemption clause has historically been included in Canada’s trade agreements with the United States, from the 1988 Free Trade Agreement to the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement, or CUSMA. This exemption ensures that cultural industries are carved out from the scope of the agreements, allowing Canada to retain the freedom to support its cultural industries.

Today, this achievement is more essential than ever, as our American trade partners put pressure on certain Canadian measures aimed at supporting its audiovisual and music industries, among others. The coalition stresses that Canadian culture is not negotiable: All its richness and diversity must remain excluded from ongoing trade negotiations with the United States.

In addition, given the considerable economic weight of cultural industries, the importance of the cultural exemption is not just symbolic. According to a study released in October 2025 by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce's business data lab, Canada’s cultural sector contributed $65 billion to the national economy in 2024, representing 2% of GDP and 1.1 million jobs across the country. The arts, entertainment and recreation sector supports more jobs per million dollars of output than sectors such as retail trade, construction, agriculture, or oil and gas.

I will now turn it over to Ms. Messier.

[Hélène Messier, French-Speaking Co-Chair, Coalition for the Diversity of Cultural Expressions]

The audiovisual sector, which I represent, generates nearly 180,000 jobs in Canada. The audiovisual industry contributes close to $11 billion to GDP, with a production value of $9.6 billion. The content it brings to the screen shapes our identity and it entertains, it informs and it brings together Canadians.

Canadians themselves reaffirmed their attachment to cultural content in a recent survey conducted for the Canadian Media Producers Association, or CMPA. Results show that 91% of Canadians believe it is important to protect Canadian culture and identity, particularly in the face of U.S. influence. Moreover, 86% of respondents believe that the Government of Canada should actively support cultural and creative industries through tax credits and direct funding.

It is precisely to safeguard this richness that maintaining a cultural exemption clause in the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement, or CUSMA, is crucial. In this regard, the CDEC, the Coalition for the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, reiterates the Canadian government's clear commitment in trade negotiations with the United States. The French language, and Canadian and Quebec culture, will never be on the table.

This commitment was made during the electoral campaign by Prime Minister Mark Carney and reiterated on October 7 during an event organized by the CMPA and the Minister of Canadian Identity and Culture, Steven Guilbeault. These commitments are reassuring, but we believe that vigilance beyond the exemption itself is necessary.

The rise of generative AI, which is profoundly transforming the cultural ecosystem, is creating unprecedented challenges for cultural diversity. This highlights the need to carefully monitor all digital trade and AI clauses in trade agreements. It is essential to act now to ensure that our trade commitments do not limit our ability to support culture.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

Thank you very much.

Go ahead, Ms. Hamelin.

[Bettina Hamelin, President and Chief Executive Officer, Innovative Medicines Canada]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

Good afternoon, committee members. My name is Bettina Hamelin, and I am the president and CEO of Innovative Medicines Canada. I welcome the opportunity to speak with you as part of your study of the forthcoming CUSMA review.

IMC is the national association representing the innovative pharmaceutical industry in Canada. Our members are at the forefront of discovering, developing and delivering life-changing medicines, diagnostics and vaccines that benefit all Canadians. Our member companies support 110,000 high-quality, well-paying jobs and invest $3.2 billion in R and D every year across Canada. These activities contribute $18.4 billion per year to Canada's economy.

Since taking office in January 2025, President Trump has implemented several policy changes that significantly impact the pharmaceutical industry in the U.S. and Canada. In particular, the U.S. administration is expecting the so-called most favoured nations, which include Canada, to pay their fair share for innovations. That is why I'm here today: to reinforce how critical it is for Canada to take timely action so Canadians can benefit from new innovative medicines and to position this need at the forefront of our CUSMA negotiations.

Canada has an opportunity to create a competitive environment that supports pharmaceutical innovation, accelerates patient access to medicines and strengthens intellectual property protections, all of which are necessary to maintain the benefits of our integrated North American pharmaceutical supply chain. In practical terms, we need proactive measures through upcoming trade negotiations, or fewer innovations will reach Canada, which will delay or prevent patients' access to life-changing and life-saving medicines.

My intent here is to convey the importance of addressing this issue now. Science is advancing rapidly, resulting in breakthroughs across a wide range of therapeutic areas, from cancer and Alzheimer's disease treatments to those for rare and more common non-communicable diseases like diabetes and heart disease. However, patients only benefit from these new innovations when they can access them in Canada in a timely manner.

As part of our submission to the Government of Canada's recent CUSMA consultations, we outlined five elements for the government to prioritize in negotiations and implementation. Number one, protect the Canadian supply of medicine and future product launches. Number two, increase Canada's financing of pharmaceutical innovation to be comparable to that of leading jurisdictions, including through establishing a health innovation and resilience fund. Number three, accelerate public access to new innovative medicines by one year. Number four, address necessary regulatory flexibilities in the PMPRB regulation. Number five, strengthen intellectual property standards, including data protections.

In conclusion, it is essential that the pharmaceutical industry and government work together to ensure a strong and resilient North American supply chain so Canadians can access the medicines they need when they need them.

Thank you for your time. I look forward to answering your questions.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

Thank you very much.

Mr. El-Batal, you have five minutes.

[Kamal El-Batal, General Director, MRC de Thérèse-De Blainville]

Good morning, Madam Chair.

My name is Kamal El‑Batal, and I am the general director and clerk-treasurer of the MRC de Thérèse‑De Blainville. This RCM in the greater Montreal area is located on the north shore, which serves as a gateway to the Laurentians. It is home to more than 168,000 residents and 5,400 businesses, including more than 285 manufacturing businesses, which provide nearly 60,000 jobs. It's an industrial, bio-food, commercial, institutional and cultural RCM.

Today, I'm going to talk to you about three priority levers that serve to strengthen Canada's economic resilience under the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement, or CUSMA: reducing our trade dependence on the U.S. market, better mobilizing our diplomatic network and stimulating trade within Canada.

As you know, the structure of the Canadian market is 70% dependent on the U.S. market. This concentration exposes our economy to several systemic risks, namely commercial risks, political risks and economic risks. I sent you a document that gives some explanation on the nature of those risks.

Some regions of Quebec are much more vulnerable than others in Canada, which complicates the development of targeted public policies. In that regard, I propose creating a Canadian sectoral trade dependency index, which would aim to assess the level of concentration of exports to a single market, particularly the U.S. market, by economic sector and region. That index would make it possible to identify strategic sectors at risk, prioritize trade diversification efforts and guide the design of export support policies. The most important thing is to support the planning of future free trade agreements based on an analysis that differentiates the needs by sector.

The second lever is to actively mobilize Canadian trade delegations. Here's my observation on these delegations: Our diplomatic network is strong, but underutilized by our small or medium-sized businesses, or SMEs. Too few of them access the services of embassies and consulates, despite their potential to provide support. My suggestion is to turn our embassies and consulates into genuine monitoring and trade opportunity units, working together with the local chambers of commerce. It's important to target critical supply chains, namely everything to do with clean energy, semiconductors, strategic minerals, health, technological know-how and so on.

The third lever is to promote internal trade across Canada or within Canada. Interprovincial trade is slowed down by internal barriers that are often more restrictive than international ones. I propose launching a pan-Canadian synergistic initiative to liberalize domestic trade in partnership with the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, municipal and provincial associations, chambers of commerce federations, governments and territories. The goal is to propel and foster the economic autonomy and resilience of local SMEs, which create more than two thirds of jobs.

As you know, a number of municipal associations, Quebec municipalities and SMEs want to work together, in synergy, to strengthen interprovincial collaboration. Unfortunately, certain restrictive barriers are holding back the Canadian market, which is huge and has great potential. It's important to remember that the global market isn't just the United States, despite its proximity and our economic dependence on it. There is Asia, India, Europe and Africa. Some African countries are rapidly emerging countries in terms of their gross domestic product. The possibilities are endless. The government can involve the Canadian diaspora, people from immigrant backgrounds who are able to decode certain cultural traits and promote the emergence of international markets.

In conclusion, the CUSMA review represents a historic opportunity for Canada to modernize its economic levers. It isn't a matter of just defending what we have, but rethinking our economic strategy according to three principles: resilience, diversification and decentralization. Canada has the necessary tools, local expertise and institutional network. All that's left is to align our efforts in a synergistic way, harmonize initiatives and act with a certain vision and foresight over the long term.

Thank you for your attention, and I am available to answer your questions.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

Thank you very much.

We'll go to Mr. McKenzie, please, for six minutes.

[David McKenzie, Conservative, Calgary Signal Hill, AB]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

I might start with Ms. Hamelin.

You mentioned the number of jobs involved in the industry that your organization represents. I'm wondering if you could give us some information on the locations of enterprises across Canada. It would be my general understanding that there's some concentration in this industry, but do you have members clear across Canada in all of our provinces and territories?

[Bettina Hamelin]

Yes, we have employment across the country from coast to coast. There is a concentration of headquarters in Ontario and Quebec, but that doesn't mean all of these jobs are in those two provinces. They are definitely across the country.

I should also mention that our companies' global headquarters are located in the U.S. and Europe, so there is a great opportunity for diversification as well.

[David McKenzie, Conservative, Calgary Signal Hill, AB]

That's outstanding. Thank you.

You mentioned the five elements for inclusion in negotiations. I've reviewed that list, and I'm wondering if you can help guide us on the domestic elements of those priorities versus those that would find themselves in international trade agreements. It strikes me that there are a number of parts there about things Canada can do now and that we have the ability to change in our domestic law and policy.

[Bettina Hamelin]

I think it's important to recognize there is an interplay between what government can do domestically and what finds its place in trade negotiations.

One of the key aspects here is that it takes three and a half years after a medicine is launched in the United States or in other leading jurisdictions for Canadian patients to have access to that medicine through public formularies across the country. That process is long because of quite a bit of red tape within Canada. Absolutely, we're working with the Canadian government to take a look at this red tape and find opportunities to shorten the timeline, because it puts Canadians at risk of not getting the medicines they need when they need them.

Where it has an important place in our trade negotiations is that President Trump has taken notice of what other countries do or don't do when it comes to supporting innovation. President Trump's argument has been that 5% of the world's population is American, yet the U.S. pays for 75% of the innovation. He's taken notice of that imbalance. That is where the conversation needs to be placed in the trade negotiations, to use, quite frankly, the opportunity to negotiate with President Trump on how Canada can respond to some of his questions about our contributions to innovation.

I think the conversation around IP and patent protection is an important one. Canada is not at par with other jurisdictions when it comes to patent protection [Technical difficulty—Editor]. President Trump has taken notice of that. It's really about having an environment where Canadian companies maintain a launch capacity in this country, so there's a lot of interconnection between the conversations within Canada and the conversations between Canada and the U.S.