Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to rise in the House to speak to Bill C-41, An Act to implement the Free Trade Agreement between Canada and the Republic of Korea. I will be sharing my time with the hon. member for Dartmouth—Cole Harbour.
I am very pleased to speak to this bill, especially as a member of the Standing Committee on International Trade. I had the opportunity to work with the hon. member for Vancouver Kingsway, our international trade critic, who did a great deal of work on this file. He consulted the stakeholders and did an excellent job on Bill C-41.
The NDP uses three criteria to assess free trade agreements. We assess such agreements on an individual basis. In other words, we do our homework on every free trade agreement. The first criterion is respect for democracy, human rights and environmental standards. Free trade agreements must be negotiated with countries that have high standards in these three areas or are in the process of achieving these objectives.
The second criterion for reviewing these free trade agreements has to do with the trading partner's economy. Is the economy of the proposed partner of significant or strategic value to Canada? Third, the terms of the proposed agreement have to be satisfactory.
Unlike the Liberal Party, which is ready to support free trade agreements without even reading them, the NDP feels it is important to read free trade agreements before taking a position on them. Having studied the free trade agreement with South Korea, we are proud to support Bill C-41 because the agreement fulfills those three criteria. South Korea is a democratic country with very high environmental standards that is of significant strategic value to Canada.
I would like to talk about South Korea's profile and our trade relationship with that country. South Korea is a world leader in environmental policy. Over the past few years, it has invested billions of dollars in an ambitious green growth strategy designed to improve energy efficiency and stimulate green and renewable technology. The Conservative government would do well to follow this innovative country's example.
South Korea also clearly complies with high environmental and labour standards and shares the Canadian values of human rights and democracy. Since South Korea has become a world leader in renewable energy and green technology, Canada can take advantage of this free trade agreement to boost trade in these important sectors.
South Korea is Canada's seventh-largest trading partner and the third-largest economy in Asia after China and Japan. Businesses in my riding of Rivière-des-Mille-Îles will also support a broader free trade relationship with South Korea.
In 2013, Canadian exports to South Korea were valued at $3.4 billion, while South Korean exports to Canada were worth $7.3 billion.
I would like to talk a little about my riding and the economic sectors that are crucial to the economy of Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, which is in the Lower Laurentians. As many people know, my riding is home to a number of world-class small and medium-sized businesses in the aerospace industry. Examples of those businesses include Patt Technologies and Metcor in Saint-Eustache, as well as DCM Aerospace and TMH Canada in Boisbriand. I am proud to say that there are 20 companies and 4,000 employees working in the aerospace sector in my riding.
I therefore welcome the measures in this free trade agreement that will boost this sector, which is so important to the Montreal region. The Canada-Korea free trade agreement will create more opportunities to access markets in the aerospace industry. In fact, as soon as this agreement enters into force, 100% of tariff lines will be duty free. Current duties can be as high as 8%. This, then, is great news for the aerospace sector.
I would like to quote a stakeholder in that industry. Jim Quick, the president and CEO of the Aerospace Industries Association of Canada, said:
Our industry depends on exports and access to international markets to remain competitive and continue creating jobs and revenues here at home. This agreement is imperative to restoring a level playing field for Canadian firms in the South Korean market, which is especially important given the considerable growth the aerospace industry will see in the Asia-Pacific region in coming years.
Clearly, the gains for this important economic sector have been thoroughly studied, and I support the measures in this free trade agreement.
Another sector that could also benefit from this free trade agreement is the wine and spirits industry. As I tell everyone who visits my beautiful riding, Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, we are home to the largest red wine producers in Quebec, and I am very proud to say so. In the Canada-Korea free trade agreement, tariffs on ice wine, which are currently 15%, will disappear. This is definitely good news for Quebec's wine producers.
As I have little time remaining for my speech, I would like to speak briefly about the part of this free trade agreement that concerns investor-state disputes. There is a caveat with respect to the NDP's support for this bill. An NDP government would not have included this type of dispute settlement mechanism in a free trade agreement with Korea. Canada and Korea are both democratic countries with strong justice systems. It should be noted that Korea's main opposition party is also opposed to this mechanism. An NDP government would negotiate with South Korea in order to drop this part of the agreement.
Fortunately, unlike the Canada-China investment agreement, this agreement is not binding on the government for 31 years and can be renegotiated or terminated with six months' notice. That is good news.
I welcome questions from my hon. colleagues. I would like to say once again that I support Bill C-41.