Madam Speaker, I am pleased today to be involved in the conclusion of a project to which my colleagues and I devoted considerable time in the course of 1994.
To their credit, the Liberal government's policies tabled today differ significantly from those of previous governments and take a somewhat new approach in terms of international trade. The need to tighten spending probably forced the government to make choices in its international trade promotion programs. The policies being presented today, however, are being presented as well thought out and considered.
The government's approach differs from that of its predecessor in that it is proposing diversification of markets outside North America and would appear to be dismissing or even denying the phenomenon of continentalization. Furthermore, it is proposing a vigorous strategy to promote free trade through multilateral organizations such as the WTO, regional organizations such as APEC, the North and South America free trade area and a still theoretical European and American free trade area.
Finally, the minister is initiating a series of measures to try to contain American unilateralism, which is viewed as a threat to Canada's commercial development.
This is, in fact, one of the most striking elements of the speech by the Minister for International Trade and of the statement of policy tabled today. With your permission, I would like to comment briefly on it. I will say right off that we reject the one-dimensional image of our trading partner being painted for us. Once again, the minister has described the United States to us as some sort of elephant to be constrained or a geopolitical and commercial problem to be managed, to use the minister's wording.
Given this analysis of Canadian-American relations, one can see why the minister seems to have had difficulty in developing a strategy consisting of anything more than, in a manner of speaking, aiming to contain, restrict, neutralize and indeed limit our relations with the United States. How can such an attitude be justified in view of the enormous market located just across the border whose influence will make or break our economic prosperity?
The minister translates his vision into policies with a similar perspective on the United States. He does in fact mention "taking a united stand", "protecting" ourselves and "assuming a defensive position". These overly cautious and defensive policies are born of this fearful attitude towards the United States and of a siege mentality.
Some people, I am sure, would tell me that the United States have not always fully respected the principles of free trade. I would gladly agree. In this regard, I would even add that the Bloc Quebecois and I have not hesitated to criticize in no uncertain terms the unspeakable attitude of our neighbours to the south in regard to steel, wheat, timber, beer, uranium and, most recently, agricultural products subject to supply management as well as cultural products.
In fact, that is the reason why we strongly support this government's desire to work towards an international system based on respect of the shared rules of the game by all parties, even commercial giants.
We support the initiatives presented to the World Trade Organization, which must now prove itself and study crucially important issues such as rules on dumping and subsidies.
We also support the government's wish to open NAFTA up to new players and to give us more weight against the United States.
Furthermore, we support the trilateral discussions being held between the United States and Mexico in order to reach an agreement on dumping and subsidies before the end of the year.
We expect a lot from the Prime Minister's campaign promise on this issue. However, this undue wariness, this near mental blocking of the United States troubles us, because it blinds the government to business opportunities and to the huge potential the American market holds, especially for our small and medium size businesses.
Too preoccupied with the relative importance of the United States in our trade structure, the government refuses to see that we still have not exploited all of the potential there. Nevertheless, each year hundreds of small and medium size businesses baptize their export operations by naturally turning to the commercial entity which is geographically closest, where language is not a barrier, the culture is similar and, of course, where free trade rules apply.
In fact, for the vast majority of small and medium size businesses, the United States is the export market of choice.
As a consequence, the government should perceive the action plan for small and medium size businesses on the American market more in terms of development, exploitation and conquest of a new market. Policies on the promotion of international trade and the allotment of resources should take into consideration and reflect this inevitable reality.
Need I remind members that economic growth in Canada is closely linked to our businesses' exports to the United States? One has but to consider the extraordinary increase of 19.8 per cent in Canadian exports to the American market, and the increase of close to 30 per cent for Quebec in 1993. Growth in that area was almost six times greater than growth in our exports to Asia.
For the nine first months of 1994, our exports to the United States increased again, from 19.8 per cent to 21 per cent. These figures clearly show that our post-recession economic growth is not due solely to the new developing markets of Japan, China and other Asian countries, far from it.
Despite what the Liberal government may think or wish, Canada is part of the increasingly integrated North American market. Trying to diversify our markets is one thing, but ignoring Canada's inevitable economic and trade integration with the rest of North America is another.
This analysis brings me to the conclusion that we are now witnessing a re-emergence of the third option favoured by Liberals in the 1970s, namely replacing Europe with Asia as our main market.
This ambitious but rather ineffective, not to say unproductive, policy overshadows once again the government's statements and options, something that we find quite alarming. Government efforts to target geographic markets are generally not effective. Only businesses are in a position to identify their markets of choice, and the government must adjust to their choices. Eighty per cent of Canadian businesses want to do business in the U.S. If some of them feel up to exploring less accessible markets, all the better. We welcome their success, which creates jobs and generates wealth.
However, we cannot agree with efforts to redirect artificially, so to speak, Canadian trade toward other markets by unjustifiably neglecting to look forward with enthusiasm to the development of our full trade potential in the U.S. This would be a major strategic mistake.
Allow me to quote from our dissenting report remarks that appear to be more appropriate than ever:
However, it would be irresponsible to overlook the proximity of Europe and the enormous potential of this continent, particulary where Quebec is concerned. Is the St. Lawrence River not the most direct point of entry of Europe into the North American continent? Nor should we lose sight of the undeniable political advantages that Quebec enjoys because of its French and British roots.
-the European continent, reconciled from West to East, with a population of close to 600 million consumers, flush with capital and cutting edge technological and industrial expertise, is not a player to be dismissed lightly.
As Canada stands poised to redefine its relations with the world, it must rediscover the old continent from which it split and structure its foreign policy on the European axis, the counterpart of the American and Asian axes.
In closing, I would like to touch on a number of concepts that have been incorporated in the governmental strategy before us. First, the government proposes the Team Canada concept. In clear terms, this means an Ottawa-based centralized approach to international trade. It may suit certain provinces, as is apparently the case of Ontario, who signed with the federal government a coordination agreement that could not be imposed upon any other province, especially not Quebec. Quebec has developed an extensive international trade representation network that is proven-I repeat, proven-and that it certainly has no intention of doing away with.
The Team Canada approach ignores the economic and cultural reality of Canadian regions. It would be incorrect to consider this country as one, single, homogenous market. Canada is made up of several regions, each of which has its unique characteristics and its own primary markets, industrial fabric, strong sectors and geographic and cultural ties. Nowhere in this policy does the government take this into account, let alone in this great levelling whole that Team Canada is.
On the other hand, the government tells us in this policy statement that it intends to cut administration expenses and restructure international trade development programs. These good intentions are truly commendable and we are looking forward to seeing what will come of these good intentions, in concrete terms, in the upcoming budget. Moreover, we feel that the government's emphasis on small and medium size businesses is the obvious thing to do, since the current fiscal situation does not leave any other option and that big corporations need government support the least.
We also think that the government's intention to allow federal and provincial civil servants, as well as private sector people, take courses at the Canadian foreign service institute is an excellent idea, as well as a step towards greater utilization of government services.
It is also interesting to see that Canada is reviewing its political approach in Washington, given the new realities, and particularly the emergence of a strong U.S. Congress, more powerful than ever. We hope for concrete steps in support of this new approach.
In conclusion, we will ensure that the government implements the policies and programs which best serve the interests of all Canadians and Quebecers. We will continue to take a hard look at the controlling approach of that government. In order to ensure the prosperity and development of our businesses and communities, the vital importance of the American market must be recognized.
Moreover, that recognition must come before a necessary acceptance of that reality and a strong will to fully develop that potential.