Debates of April 18th, 2013

Opposition Motion—Canada-China Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement

[Jean Crowder, NDP, Nanaimo—Cowichan, BC]

Mr. Speaker, first nations are raising concerns about whether they are adequately protected under this agreement. Legal analysis indicates that there is cause for concern. I cited a particular case under NAFTA where the mining company was claiming that a first nation's attempt to protect a sacred site was deemed as expropriatory. There are sufficient concerns out there to warrant a serious look at whether there is a section 35 infringement under this agreement.

A Department of Justice lawyer is currently before the court because he has indicated that the government has failed in its duty to review policy and legislation to determine if there is a section 35 infringement. The lawyer has indicated that sometimes, when the advice has been that there is an almost 95% certainty that there is an infringement, the department continues to move ahead.

Given some legal concerns that have been raised, it is incumbent on the government to ensure that section 35 rights are not being infringed.

[Peter Julian, NDP, Burnaby—New Westminster, BC]

Mr. Speaker, one of the characteristics of what is such a badly botched series of policy decisions by the government is that legal lawsuits ensue. The agreements that are put forward are badly negotiated and often have huge ramifications. There is no consultation with the public. The government even refuses, with an agreement with this kind of immense ramifications for the whole country and for communities, to bring it to committee.

Does the member fear that we will be looking at even more potential lawsuits over the complete lack of consultation by the government yet again? Also, what are the ramifications for lawsuits if we put in these investor state conditions that allow for secret arbitration, where lawyers basically decide how much money the taxpayers cough up?

[Jean Crowder, NDP, Nanaimo—Cowichan, BC]

Mr. Speaker, it is a sad comment when first nations are forced to the court as their only recourse to have their voices heard.

In this case, Hupacasath has filed an injunction to stop ratification of the FIPA at the federal court level. This injunction is being supported by the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs and the Chiefs of Ontario and the Serpentine River First Nations in Ontario.

In other omnibus legislation that was before the court, one of the first nations had filed an injunction to prevent the government from moving forward on the sections around navigable waters and some other changes that would directly impact on first nations.

In the case I cited earlier, the U.S. Department of Justice worked with first nations from Canada around a mining company's claim, and here we have the federal government continuing to not fulfill the honour of the Crown, its fiduciary responsibility for first nations, forcing first nations into court to stop the moving forward of agreements that could potentially impact on section 35 rights.

[Chungsen Leung, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary for Multiculturalism]

Mr. Speaker, what a pleasure it is to stand in the House and speak to international trade. My speech will be broken into two parts. The first part has to do with some of our trade accomplishments. Then the second part will be more specifically addressed to our FIPA with China.

Our government's top priority is creating jobs, growth and long-term prosperity in every region of Canada. That is why we are working hard to open new markets to increase Canadian exports to the world's largest, most dynamic and fastest-growing economies. Since 2006, our government has consistently opposed protectionist measures around the world and has stood up for free and open trade, showing leadership on the world stage in what was, and continues to be, a challenging period for the global economy. Canada has proven resilient through these tough global economic times.

Today, Canada is further ahead than any other G7 country when it comes to creating jobs and economic growth and further ahead than any other when it comes to our debt to GDP ratio. At the same time, Canada is just one of a handful of nations in the world with a triple A credit rating. We proudly lay claim to having the safest banking system in the world for five years, according to the World Economic Forum. Overall, Canada boasts the best fiscal position of the G7 countries and the best fiscal prospects in the G20.

It is not without good reasons that Forbes magazine has opined that Canada is the best country to do business in the G20, and the Economist Intelligence Unit has declared Canada to be the best place in the world to do business in over the next five years.

Before I delve into our trade and investment relationship with China, I will take a few moments to recap some of our government's accomplishments in promoting the interests of hard-working Canadians internationally over this past year.

Canada joined the Trans-Pacific Partnership and participated in the first full round of negotiations. The TPP is a significant opportunity to not only serve as the central pathway for economic integration in the Asia–Pacific region, but is designed to be expanded to include other countries. In fact, it is hoped that the TPP will act as the catalyst to reinvigorate the Doha round of the WTO. Once completed, the TPP will not only strengthen Canada's effort to broaden and deepen its trade relationships with dynamic and fast-growing Asia–Pacific markets, but it will also reaffirm and invigorate our traditional partnership in the Americas.

We launched the first round of negotiations with Japan for an economic partnership agreement. Japan is the world's third largest economy and a key trade and investment partner for Canada.

Furthermore, we announced exploratory discussions for a bilateral free trade agreement with Thailand and achieved observer status with the Pacific Alliance which is a group of four fast-growing Pacific countries in Latin America.

We saw the entering into force of the Canada-Jordan free trade agreement and royal assent given to the Canada-Panama Economic Growth and Prosperity Act, which came into force on April 1. This builds on other free trade agreements our government has signed in the Americas, including with Peru, Honduras and Colombia, all agreements the New Democrats have opposed. In fact, the NDP trade critic, the member for Vancouver Kingsway, argued against a free trade agreement with Colombia because “the trade unions do not want it”.

Our government has also placed an emphasis on the importance of promoting international education. An advisory panel of eminent Canadians provided recommendations to help guide Canada's international education strategy. International students contribute over $8 billion to the Canadian economy and $445 million to government tax revenues each year, supporting more than 86,000 jobs.

We completed the fifth year of the five-year global commerce strategy, the launching of a cross-country consultation and the naming of an advisory panel to help shape the next phase of the strategy.

We established a record number of trade missions to advance Canada's commercial interests abroad, including to India, China, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Thailand, Cambodia, the Philippines, Russia and Libya, and the Minister of International Trade conducted a historic trade mission to Burma just this past spring.

In North America, we signed a two-year extension to the Canada-United States softwood lumber agreement that would secure access to the U.S. market for Canada's softwood lumber until 2015. This means continued predictability for Canadian softwood lumber exporters and the hard-working forestry workers who depend on the industry for their livelihoods.

We continue to make ongoing progress in implementing the Beyond the Border and Regulatory Cooperation Council action plans to improve the flow of people and goods between Canada and the United States and laying the foundation for more jobs and growth in both countries.

While I am discussing our partnership with the United States, I would be remiss if I did not remark upon our celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Canada-U.S. free trade agreement. Since the coming into force of the agreement, Canada's annual GDP has risen by $1.1 trillion. Nearly 4.6 million jobs have been created in Canada and two-way trade in goods of services with the United States has more than tripled.

Now we all know that the NDP opposed this agreement from day one. Even today, despite the NDP leader's attempt to whitewash his party's socialist history, page 18 of the NDP policy book states, “New Democrats believe in...Renegotiating North American Free Trade Agreement”.

Any party that would threaten the economic well-being of Canadians with such a reckless proposal simply cannot be trusted. The fact is that last year our two-way trade in goods and services with the United States exceeded $742 billion. That is nearly $2 billion a day or almost $1.4 million every minute of the day. These numbers are not simply statistics. They represent some 2.4 million Canadian jobs that the NDP would simply throw away. Therefore, the NDP's anti-trade credentials are well established.

Our government's leadership in resisting protectionist measures and continuing to create new opportunities for our exporters has been key to Canada's success. Thanks to our actions, Canada's workers, businesses and exporters, including small and medium-sized enterprises that form the backbone of our economy, now have preferred access to, and a real competitive edge in, more high-growth and emerging markets around the world than any other economy in our history.

In less than six years, our government has concluded free trade agreements with nine countries: Colombia, Honduras, Jordan, Panama, Peru and the European Free Trade Association member states of Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. As I mentioned, Canada is also engaged in negotiating with large, dynamic and fast-growing markets, including the European Union, India, Japan and the countries that comprise the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

I will now focus on one aspect of our trade strategy, and that is our engagement with China, of which I speak with a little experience. I first started doing business in China in 1982. My business experience in China has been exporting mass-transit equipment, engineering services, agriculture and fisheries products to the Chinese businesses.

The simple fact is that our government is providing Canadian businesses with the tools they need to invest with confidence in China. Conversely, China is rapidly expanding its middle class and consumer base. Its population of 1.4 billion offers an enormous market to Canada's exporters. It is soon to be the world's largest economy.

Before I discuss the important part the foreign investment promotion and protection agreement plays in our trade and investment relationship with China, I would like to remark upon the importance of the people-to-people ties between our two countries, which is supported by more than 1.4 million Chinese Canadians residing in Canada. Our continued success in applying trade and investment as the twin engines of economic growth will rest upon these ties. Fundamentally, it is the strong people-to-people links that are helping us take our relationship to the next level.

In my remarks so far, I have emphasized that our Conservative government is committed to creating the right conditions for Canadian businesses to compete globally. Canada's foreign investment promotion and protection agreement with China, the world's second largest economy, will provide stronger protection for Canadians investing in China and create jobs and economic growth right here at home.

At its core, the agreement establishes a clear set of rules under which investments are made and under which investment disputes are resolved. For Canadian businesses looking to set up in China, they cannot be treated less favourably than any other international company looking to do the same. Once an investment is made, a Canadian business cannot be treated less favourably than any other business.

The agreement also ensures that all investment disputes are resolved under international arbitration. This is an important part of the agreement as it ensures that adjudications are independent and fair. Thanks to this FIPA, Canadian investors in China will no longer have to rely on the Chinese legal system to have their disputes resolved. I also have experience in resolving disputes in China.

It is also crucial to note that ours is the first bilateral investment agreement that China has signed that expressly includes language on transparency of dispute settlement proceedings. Our government has repeatedly made it clear that it is our long-standing policy that all dispute resolutions should be open to the public and that submissions made by the parties be available to the public.

Let me clear. Under the agreement any decision emanating from the dispute resolution will be made public.

It is unfortunate that for months the NDP and its anti-trade allies have continued to spread myths about this agreement. Let me clear up a few misconceptions. First, Canada retains the ability to regulate and legislate in areas such as the environment, culture, safety, health, and conservation. Furthermore, the agreement maintains Canada's ability to review foreign investments under the Investment Canada Act to ensure they provide a net benefit to Canadians and that our national security is not compromised. There is no doubt Chinese investors in Canada must obey all the laws and regulations of Canada just as any Canadian must.

Nor, as the NDP likes to pretend, is the agreement somehow unusual. Canada-China foreign investment promotion and protection agreement is a reciprocal agreement similar to the 24 other investment treaties Canada has signed with key trade investment partners. Canada is one of several countries, along with such countries as New Zealand, Germany, and the Netherlands which have all signed investment treaties with China, often on terms less favourable than the terms that Canada has negotiated with China.

This investment treaty will help protect the interests of Canadian investors. The primary purpose of the foreign investment promotion and protection agreement is to ensure that Canadian investors can invest in China with greater confidence, thereby spurring increased investment in China and creating jobs and economic growth right here at home. We have been very clear with the Chinese government that Canada wants to continue to expand its commercial relationship with China, but only in a way that produces clear benefits for both sides.

We are seeing these clear benefits to Canadians. Not only is China the world's second-largest economy, but it has recently become Canada's number two export market, second only to the United States.

In fact, Canadian goods exported to China rose 15% last year to over $19 billion. Not only that, but Canada's exports to China have nearly doubled under our Conservative government. All this being said, it is unfortunate that the NDP and professional anti-trade activists have continued to spread such misconceptions about the importance of trade to the livelihood of Canadians and about this agreement in particular.

Thankfully, Canadian investors and exporters can count on our Conservative government to create conditions for them to compete, and win, in the global economy for decades to come.

[Don Davies, NDP, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I want to draw my hon. colleague's attention to whether or not this agreement really does achieve reciprocity for Canadian investors. I am going to refer to article 8 of the FIPA, section 2, where it specifically exempts the Most Favoured Nation treatment for Canadian companies operating in China and allows China to retain any existing non-conforming measures maintained within its territory.

I know the member has some experience and knowledge about China. Would he not agree with me that China has many more non-conforming measures, it being a command economy, and it not having followed a trade liberalization trajectory like Canada has for 25 years? Would he not agree with me that, by allowing China to maintain its current non-conforming measures in the future, that subjects Canadians to far more trade barriers operating in China than Chinese firms operating in Canada, where Canada does not have nearly the same number of non-conforming measures that impact on investment?

[Chungsen Leung, Conservative, Willowdale, ON]

Mr. Speaker, that is absolutely not true. In the eighties when I was first doing business in China, we often had problems dealing with non-tariff barriers, Chinese standards on certain things, and Chinese methods of payment. But in the past 30 years, China has understood and recognized that it has to do business internationally and has to conform to international standards.

This trade agreement has, between nations, put in place the type of contract, the type of language of contract, the type of payment terms whether it is by letter of credit or by documenting its acceptance, the type of international quality control standards, and inspection standards that both parties have adhered to.

At the same time, it allows for mutually agreed upon accounting standards whereby we can work out issues having to do with foreign exchange, accounting standards, and finally it has mechanisms for dispute arbitration whether it be ICC or ICU. It is in total conformity, bringing China into an international standard of doing business.

[Wayne Easter, Liberal, Malpeque, PE]

Mr. Speaker, I listened to the remarks of the member for Willowdale.

I know he has done a fair bit of business at a personal level in China, so he certainly has firsthand experience. I think he would realize that there is an imbalance under the FIPA in terms of Canadian investors in China versus Chinese investors in Canada, and the fact that there are a lot of state-owned enterprises in China.

I just cannot understand for the life of me how the member could support the government position that we not hold adequate hearings to find the trouble spots and to hear from businesses like his. Without those adequate hearings, we have one of two choices: to go forward with what is clearly a flawed agreement and has a lot of opposition across Canada, or to go with the NDP motion which would basically turf that agreement out and then we would have nothing. That is really no choice at all.

I would ask the member, on the one hand, why he would not support holding hearings and encourage his own government to do that, and on the other hand, specifically what the implications would be if we went ahead and just tossed the agreement out.

[Chungsen Leung, Conservative, Willowdale, ON]

Mr. Speaker, let me address a few points raised by the hon. member for Malpeque.

First, regarding the SOE, state-owned enterprises, I wish to clarify for you that when I first went to China to do business, and at that time I represented a Crown corporation, the question that was asked of me was, “Mr. Leung, is your corporation owned by your province?”

I thought about the implication of that and I decided to answer, “Yes, it was a crown corporation.” You know, the response was—

[The Acting Speaker, Conservative, Barry Devolin]

I would just remind the hon. parliamentary secretary and other members to address their comments to the chair rather than to their colleagues.

[Chungsen Leung, Conservative, Willowdale, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I will address my comments through you.

The response from the Chinese government was, “I appreciate doing business with a state-owned enterprise because I know you will not run away from us.” That is the security that the Chinese are looking for. It is a different model of doing business.

Second, what I wish to address with the member for Malpeque is whether it would be of interest to his constituency if I could expand a market in China where they can export billions of tons of oysters and clams instead of a very small market. Why would we not open a market internationally that would allow that export, thereby improving the standard of living for his constituents?

[Gerald Keddy, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, I am sure that the member for Malpeque would be more than interested in exporting more oysters, lobster, and seafood to China in particular.

The hon. member, in his career before politics, did a lot of work in Asia, a lot of business in Asia and a lot of work particularly in China. In his earlier answer, he spoke a little about the need for a long-term vision, continuity, and the security of a regulatory regime. That is what the FIPA offers the Chinese.

What is the potential that we can generate from that, not just for business today but for tomorrow and in the future?

[Chungsen Leung, Conservative, Willowdale, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I realize that the member is from the fine Atlantic province of Nova Scotia, from which I also had the pleasure of exporting lots of capelin and lobster to the Far East.

[Wayne Easter, Liberal, Malpeque, PE]

Not as good as P.E.I.'s though.

[Chungsen Leung, Conservative, Willowdale, ON]

Mr. Speaker, these are national agreements between two states.

If we look at Canada as being corporate Canada, the Conservatives are looking after the best interests of corporate Canada. We are ensuring that we want to do business for the long term to ensure that there is long-term prosperity for Canada as a nation. In order to do that we need to put in place the mechanism for us to resolve disputes, the mechanism for us to pay each other on time, and the mechanism for us to meet the same standards. These are the mechanisms we need to put in so that private businesses can get on with their own business.

When I was working in China in the early 1980s, these mechanisms did not exist. Every deal had to be negotiated individually, including 200 to 300 pages of contracts. Unfortunately, at that time China did not have the mirror image of the legislation.

What we are putting in place gets both countries to a level playing field.

[Jamie Nicholls, NDP, Vaudreuil—Soulanges, QC]

Mr. Speaker, let me get this right. My hon. friend has a problem with the opposition having its roots in democratic socialist and social democratic movements but has no problem with providing investor-safe protections for a communist government to come here and do business. I find that incredible.

When we look at the history of that government and its treatment of the Tibetan people and its weaker minorities, there are serious questions to be asked as to how it will conduct business here.

My question is more about the current government's treatment of its minorities, the first peoples of Canada, the first nations. In Canada we have a duty to consult under article 35 of the Constitution, which is protecting the honour of the Crown. The Supreme Court has ruled that the government must consult aboriginal peoples on actions that affect their rights. The FIPA will give Chinese companies operating on traditional first nations territories important new rights.

Why did the government not fulfill its duty to consult the first nations?

[Chungsen Leung, Conservative, Willowdale, ON]

Mr. Speaker, any company that works on Canadian soil will have to adhere to Canadian rights, regardless of whether they are environmental, labour, tax legislation, or exploration. This is precisely the reason we need to have an agreement whereby we have an understanding of how to do business with each other.

[Annick Papillon, NDP, Québec, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the hon. member for Surrey North.

As a member of the Standing Committee on International Trade, it is my duty to rise here today to debate an agreement that could have a significant impact on Canadians from coast to coast to coast.

On several occasions—at meetings of the Standing Committee on International Trade, here in the House as well as outside the House—the NDP asked the Conservative government to be transparent and hold a public debate before signing the foreign investment promotion and protection agreement, or FIPA, between Canada and China.

As per usual, however, the Conservative government preferred to do things in secret, under the radar, behind closed doors. The agreement itself has never been debated or examined by a committee. It has never even been voted on. China and Ottawa surreptitiously negotiated this FIPA, an agreement that gives Chinese state-owned enterprises unprecedented rights that are not even offered to Canadian enterprises, an agreement that undermines Canadian sovereignty and the constitutional authority of the provinces. To add insult to injury, the agreement will have a 31-year term and cannot be revoked.

The Canada-China FIPA is the biggest trade agreement since NAFTA. It gives Chinese state-owned enterprises the right to sue Canada for damages when decisions are made at the municipal, provincial or federal level that harm their investments.

Usually, Canada signs FIPAs with countries whose investors do not own major assets in Canada. However, that is not the case with China, and the growing weight of Chinese investments in Canada now has a political price. As a result of the Canada-China foreign investment promotion and protection agreement, Canadian taxpayers will now have to shoulder disproportionate obligations with regard to Chinese companies in exchange for protecting Canadian companies in China.

According to Gus Van Harten, a law professor at York University, the rights that this treaty grants to Chinese state-owned enterprises will affect provincial authority over natural resources, taxation and property rights.

By signing this treaty, Canada is abdicating part of its sovereignty to China and its enterprises, without really getting anything in return for Canadian companies in China. Why? The reason is that the treaty also consolidates the inequality that currently exists with regard to Canadian companies' ability to access the Chinese market. Under the Investment Canada Act, Canada is currently a relatively open and transparent market. However, the existing framework in China, particularly in strategic sectors, lacks transparency, is closed and is described in a very vague manner in the treaty. China will therefore benefit from a favourable environment for its investments in Canada, but the reverse is certainly not guaranteed. That is why we, on this side of the House, are concerned.

The $15 billion takeover of the Canadian oil and gas company Nexen by Chinese energy giant CNOOC confirms the imbalance with regard to the two countries' respective investments. The consequences of the treaty go well beyond the oil sands. Chinese state-owned enterprises are also active in the mining sector, and they are looking at making investments in Quebec's Plan Nord. A Chinese company has already acquired a nickel mine in northern Quebec, and it will be protected by the treaty, as will all future investments.

Like all Canadian provinces, Quebec's ability to control its natural resources would be limited from this point on; and, yet again, it would happen without consultations between the province and the Conservative government.

We cannot accept the fact that a valid provincial policy—one that addresses a crucial environmental challenge and that is widely supported by the people—is being directly attacked with no real possibility of recourse.

The treaty does not prevent various levels of government from continuing to regulate environmental protection, health and public safety. However, if these regulations are detrimental to Chinese businesses, the companies can sue the governments and receive significant financial compensation—potentially in the billions of dollars.

In that context, it is probable that the provinces, municipalities and the federal government will be more reluctant to pass new regulations because they will want to avoid exposing themselves to costly lawsuits. This treaty will make passing new regulations less palatable.

For example, we do not see how Canada would be able to regulate greenhouse gas emissions or strengthen oil sand regulations without affecting Chinese investments and possibly subjecting the country to lawsuits.

Setting aside the issue of jurisdiction for the moment, it would be completely fiscally irresponsible of the federal government to negotiate an agreement that requires it to take responsibility for measures taken by a provincial government.

A number of countries have faced catastrophic fines because of these treaties. The amount of money at stake has reached tens of billions of dollars—hundreds of billions, even—to the point where certain countries, such as Australia, have decided to take another look at whether investment protection agreements, which is what this is, are a good idea.

Finally, judging from the experience of other countries, the trade agreement between China and Canada may well undermine the development of Canada's clean energy technology sector.

It is inconceivable for a treaty that could have such a devastating effect on Canadian sovereignty, provincial jurisdictions and public rights to be passed with absolutely no democratic debate in Parliament and across the country. That is why we must stand firm against it. Canadians have not given this government a mandate to sell our sovereignty to China or to the highest bidder.

The NDP believes in the importance of our commitment to China and other emerging markets. We want clear rules that support investor confidence and that protect and promote Canada's interests. We want a trade policy that creates new business opportunities for Canadian companies and that promotes value-added industries, as well as high-quality jobs, while respecting labour law and environmental law.

Unfortunately, on a number of occasions, this government signed agreements based on nothing more than a radical right-wing ideology and a hands-off approach that simply does not work.

We in the NDP feel that Canada should have a robust trade policy, with good partners, in order to reflect Canada's commitment to responsible and environmentally sound economic development that respects all stakeholders.

Let us be clear. We are in favour of trade, but trade that is fair, effective and beneficial for both sides. That is the key.

This is not about signing free trade agreements with anyone, at any time, under any circumstances, time and time again, the way things are being done right now. No, this is about paying attention, taking these agreements very seriously and taking the time to listen to every voice across the country in order to have a clear vision, to think about all the things that could go wrong and to really be predictable. Now, that would be a responsible approach.

To conclude, the Conservatives must be clear with the Government of China and with all Canadians by stating that they will not ratify the agreement being negotiated right now. Canada's trade and investment relationship with China is far too important to make mistakes.

[Jamie Nicholls, NDP, Vaudreuil—Soulanges, QC]

Mr. Speaker, a few minutes ago I asked a government member a question about the first nations. I would like to ask my colleague that same question.

Does the member think there are provisions in the FIPA to protect first nations' rights, and does she not find it disturbing that the rights of the first nations are not being protected?

[Annick Papillon, NDP, Québec, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for his question.

As Canadians now know, the NDP clearly supports the first nations and understands that their rights must be protected. It is very regrettable that we are the only ones.

We think it is clear that an agreement can only happen with the involvement of all levels of government and the first nations. Once again, with this agreement, the government has not listened to people and has not listened to the first nations. That is shameful.

The Conservative government should be ashamed of its attitude. It makes no sense not to listen to anyone when negotiating free trade agreements.

[Wayne Easter, Liberal, Malpeque, PE]

Mr. Speaker, I know the member for Quebec is a fairly hard-working member of the trade committee and does good research on the various issues we have to deal with at the trade committee. However, I have to ask her a question. It is part of the debate here and I have been saying this on pretty much every topic, that Parliament is not working. It is not working because members are not allowed to speak up and committees are not allowed to do their work. If a member moves a motion for a hearing, it is shoved to an in camera session by Conservative members. In other words, it is in secret. Then somehow the motion gets voted down—we cannot talk about what happens in secret—and no hearings are done.

Maybe the member could relate to you, Mr. Speaker, her experience on the trade committee when both the NDP and Liberals have tried to have this issue discussed and witnesses brought in on the impact that this Canada-China FIPA might have on them. I wonder if she could relate her thoughts on that matter and how this place is working or not working?

[Annick Papillon, NDP, Québec, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I will respond quickly.

I obviously agree with my colleague about the way things are done on the Standing Committee on International Trade. We are not listened to and we are not heard. All of the serious decisions are made in camera. I very much understand what my colleague just said.

[Nathan Cullen, NDP, Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I have a question on the public consultation, or utter lack of consultation, over such a fundamental trade relationship. It is an agreement that could have effects right across the Canadian economy and Canadian societies everywhere, among first nations and all across the board.

How can a government that I remember running on the idea of accountability and transparency—after the problems the Liberal governments had with Gomery and what not—put forward such a significant trade deal that could impact Canadian resources, Canadian jobs and Canadian sovereignty, without any public meetings or public consultation whatsoever? How can it expect Canadians to simply blindly agree that this must be good because this particular prime minister says so?

[Annick Papillon, NDP, Québec, QC]

Mr. Speaker, indeed, public consultation is key to democracy. The message the government is sending by not holding consultations is that once elected, it no longer has to listen to a word Canadians have to say or to what experts think even though they know a lot more than we do.

Let us call a spade a spade. There are people in our country with a tremendous amount of expertise, and we are lucky to have them. The least we can do is listen to them when they have something to say, when they ask to be heard. They can contribute ideas about things we have not yet thought of or read about. They are ahead of the curve. They know precisely what the consequences of this will be in 10 or 50 years. They know where we will end up with this and the impact of including such and such a clause in a free trade agreement.

When the government does not consult or listen to experts, it is putting Canadian democracy in jeopardy. I can understand why Canadians are concerned.

[Jasbir Sandhu, NDP, Surrey North, BC]

Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to speak to the Canada-China foreign investment promotion and protection agreement on behalf of my constituents in Surrey North.

As the official opposition, the NDP was very concerned about this agreement, particularly about how it was formed, the silence surrounding the agreement and the potential destruction it could cause to Canadian businesses and Canadians. I support the motion presented in the House by my hon. colleague from Vancouver Kingsway. The government should not ratify the Canada-China FIPA, and it should properly inform the government of the People's Republic of China that it has no intention of doing so.

FIPA is a bilateral agreement with China, a major investor in Canada. It is not a free trade agreement. It was signed on September 9, 2012; however, the deal was kept secret until September 26, when it was tabled in Parliament. The agreement was not debated by Parliament; it was not considered by the committee and the international trade committee, of which I am a member; nor was it voted on in any votes in the House. Although it has been available for ratification since November 1, 2012, the Conservative government has not yet officially committed to this treaty. If the government believes that the agreement is so strong, why is it taking so long to ratify it? Perhaps it is because the Conservative government also knows how damaging it could be for Canadians, Canadian business and the Canadian economy.

As Canadians, we are proud of our country's rich supply of natural resources. The trade of these resources would benefit our economy enormously, and China is an ideal partner for those resources. China has an expanding economy due to its growing middle class. Consequently, it requires increased imports of oil, lumber, food, technology, agricultural goods and other basic necessities. Canada has the means to meet this demand; therefore Canada and China would be complementary trading partners and we would want to pursue a fair deal with China.

However, the Canada-China FIPA deal, in its current state as signed by the government, has not given Canada a fair share. This is not unprecedented, because we are resource-rich and we are in a position to be a major exporting country, yet time and time again, we see trade deals signed by the government that set us up to be exploited.

Foremost, the Canada-China foreign investment promotion and protection agreement is poorly named. It offers neither promotion nor protection of Canadian trade interests in China. It is biased toward China and Chinese companies. It does not present Canadian companies with the same privileges in the Chinese markets as Chinese companies have in China, nor as they have in Canada. We want to see a growth of Canadian companies in China, but we need a level playing field for our businesses as they expand into global markets. Canadian companies deserve the same promotions and protections that Chinese companies receive in Canada. This is not what the current Canada-China FIPA offers.

Not only does this treaty expose Canadian businesses to risk; it plays with the future of Canadian taxpayers. The Canada-China FIPA includes investor-state dispute mechanisms designed to allow Chinese companies to literally sue Canada if they do not agree with our federal regulations. These court processes are located completely outside of legal jurisdiction and rely on Canadian taxpayers funding them. This is not a contingency issue. Canada has already experienced similar problems through NAFTA treaty tribunal bodies; we have been sued numerous times by American companies and we have never won a case. Furthermore, Chinese companies already have a track record of using the investor-state mechanism to challenge regulations of trading partners.

I do not understand why the Conservative government would expose Canadians to such risk when there is a clear record of arbitration. Perhaps the government is also ignoring its most important resource: its Canadian citizens.

As a government that claims to be fiscally accountable and competent in trade, why are the Conservatives trying to undermine Canada's potential? Perhaps they do not understand the worth of our resources and how valuable we are as a trade partner. Perhaps they do not see the potential in Canadian companies. This ignorance does not prove them fiscally capable, and the enormous trade deficit speaks to the lack of credibility in exchange agreements.

In fact, under the current government, Canadians have seen our trade deficit grow over the last number of years. In 2012 alone, Canada had a current account deficit of $67 billion, which is an $85 billion drop from an $18 billion surplus in 2006, the first year the Conservative government came into power. That is the government's record. It has been reckless. It has shown its incompetence when it comes to negotiating trade agreements, and it has shown its incompetence if we look at our trade deficit over the years. Under the current government, we have had the largest trade deficit ever in Canadian history. Yet, the Conservatives call themselves fiscally competent and want to expand trade.

We need trade, a fair trade, where Canadian interests are also put forward by the government. That has not happened under the Conservatives.

In addition to the growing current account deficit, the manufacturing deficit has nearly quadrupled since 2006, to just over $100 billion. Good paying jobs have disappeared under the current government.

The manufacturing deficit creates a bigger problem because we are importing more finished goods from outside this country, rather than manufacturing those goods in this country; so we can see we are not exporting as many finished goods as we could be, under the Conservative government.

Stacked up against 18 of the most comparable trading nations, including the U.S. and Australia, Canada is at the bottom of the list when it comes to trade performance.

If Canada has resources and ideal trading partners, why is the deficit growing? It is due to mismanagement of trade by the inept government agreeing to deficient treaties such as FIPA with China and Canada.

The government has chosen to undermine democracy through its lack of parliamentary procedures in creating the Canada-China FIPA. It has chosen to benefit Chinese corporations rather than supporting Canadian businesses, and it has chosen to expose Canadian taxpayers to huge liabilities in potential legal arguments through trade tribunals.

The Canada-China trade relationship should be the foundation upon which our future agreements are built. Canada has an opportunity to create a trade deal with China that is mutually beneficial to both nations. We should be establishing an agreement with elements of communication and co-operation between our two countries because trade deals are not just about trade anymore. They present unique opportunities for the collaborative sharing of education and culture, among many other things.

We need to inform China about our intentions because we value that country as a trading partner. We must treat China with courtesy and we must pursue a trade relationship that is respectful both of China and of our own country.

We want bilateral trade agreements like FIPA to be designed to actually serve Canadians and close the embarrassingly large deficit that, under the current government, we have created. We want them to reflect the value we place on Canadian citizens, Canadian businesses and the Canadian economy. FIPA, as it currently stands, is unratifiable, both in spirit and in content.

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Winnipeg North, MB]

Mr. Speaker, it is interesting that, when the Conservative government thinks of trade, surplus versus deficit, it figures the best way to deal with it is to come up with trade agreements.

The NDP members have the sense that trade agreements are a bad thing. Even though the member made reference to trade agreements, if the truth be known, NDP members have never stood in their places and voted in favour of a trade agreement.

The Conservatives need to recognize that trade agreements are good, but they also need to do a little extra beyond just signing an agreement. The example I used earlier was China. The current Prime Minister goes to China and brings back a couple of panda bears.

When former Prime Minister Jean Chrétien went to China, he brought a trade mission with him and literally brought back hundreds of millions of dollars. Trade agreements and active trade missions provide thousands of jobs and opportunities for Canadians and businesses.

Would the member not agree that trade missions are critically important—