Mr. Speaker, last September in a speech to the Vancouver Board of Trade, the Minister of Industry stated that “In 2006, we had free trade agreements with five countries around the world. Our government has taken it from five to forty-three countries. And of course this includes the historic Canada–European Union free trade agreement”.
Again, we do not have an agreement with the European Union yet. It is not in force. The text is not even completed, because we have parties that are still saying that the agreement has to be changed. At a fragile time like this, what do the Conservatives do? They renege, they betray a promise made to Newfoundland and Labrador that is causing the province to say it will not take part in CETA.
Respected trade writer John Ivison said in a January 9 column about the fisheries fund that “...it could start the gradual unravelling of the fragile CETA deal”.
I will conclude by saying that the NDP official opposition believes that broadening and deepening our trade with the European Union is important. We believe that a good agreement, well negotiated, would be positive for our country. But an agreement like that requires people of good faith. It requires honour and a government that will respect the commitments it made, and not trick and betray provinces into giving up things only to pull the rug from under them later on.
The NDP official opposition stands squarely behind the people of Newfoundland and Labrador. We stand foursquare with the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador and will continue to fight to make sure that its agreement is honoured.
My final point is that this shows the folly of the Liberals, who gave the government a carte blanche, a blank sheet, to support CETA before they knew what was in it. This shows how important it is that the NDP is the only party in the House that is making sure we get a good deal for Canadians.