Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak to Bill C-30, an act that would implement the comprehensive economic and trade agreement between Canada and the European Union and its member states and to provide for certain other measures.
I would like to begin by thanking my hon. colleagues, the member for Battlefords—Lloydminster and the member for Abbotsford, for their past and current work on this important file.
Bill C-30 is a continuation of our previous government's ambitious trade agenda and I am pleased to see that the current Liberal government is continuing to push for CETA.
Bill C-30 would implement the comprehensive economic and trade agreement, or CETA, between Canada and the European Union and its member states. The Canada-EU trade agreement is our country's biggest bilateral trade initiative since NAFTA. Including the 28 member states, the EU represents the world's largest single market for an investor and trader with over 500 million people and annual economic activity of almost $20 trillion.
When CETA comes into force Canada will be one of the few countries in the world to have guaranteed preferential access to the world's two largest economies, the United States and the European Union. This is a historic deal which would benefit Canadians from coast to coast. It would ensure that Canadians and Canadian businesses are in a strong position as we move forward to an increasingly globalized world.
Most members would agree that Canada is a trading nation. Without trade, thousands, if not millions, of Canadians would lose their jobs. It is therefore crucial that we continue to expand access for Canadians and Canadian businesses to international markets, like this agreement would do. Canada needs to maximize the benefits. We are a free trading nation and we need to establish trading relationships beyond North America. That is exactly what CETA would accomplish.
As CETA approaches final implementation, we will continue to hold the government to account and ensure that Canadians reap the rewards of free trade not only with the EU, but also through other significant trade deals.
The Liberal government must also honour commitments made to vital sectors of our economy, specifically to the supply-managed dairy industry as well as commitments made to the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador in terms of the CETA fisheries investment fund.
Now let us talk about the benefits of this deal.
The EU is the world's largest economy. It is also the world's largest importing market for goods. The EU's annual imports alone are worth more than Canada's GDP.
A joint Canada-EU study that supported the launch of negotiations concluded that a trade agreement with the EU could bring a 20% boost in bilateral trade and a $12-billion annual increase to Canada's economy, the economic equivalent of adding $1,000 to the average Canadian family's income, or almost 80,000 new jobs to the Canadian economy.
When CETA comes into force, nearly 100% of all EU tariff lines of non-agricultural products will be duty-free along with close to 94% of all EU tariff lines of agricultural products.
This agreement would also give Canadian service suppliers, which employ more than 13.8 million Canadians and account for 70% of Canada's total GDP, the best market access the EU has ever granted to any of its free trade agreement partners. It would establish greater transparency in the EU services market, resulting in better, more secure, and more predictable market access.
The agreement would also provide Canadian and EU investors with greater certainty, stability, transparency, and protection for their investments. Our preferential access to the EU would attract investments into Canada from the U.S., and EU investors would look to Canada as the gateway to NAFTA.
The agreement would also give Canadian suppliers of goods and services secure and preferential access to the world's largest procurement market. The EU's $3.3 trillion government procurement market would provide them with significant new export opportunities. The agreement would also expand and secure opportunities for Canadian firms to supply their goods and services to the EU's 28 member states and thousands of regional and local government entities.
Our previous government worked tirelessly to sign trade deals right across the globe, agreements with Korea, Ukraine, Honduras, Panama, Jordan, Colombia, Peru, and the TPP nations, just to name a few. I am pleased to see a continuation of the previous government's work on this file, and I hope that the Liberal government will continue to advance Canadian trade interests abroad.
During this discussion on international trade agreements, it is crucial that we take into consideration the recent comments by the new President of the United States on the renegotiation of NAFTA.
Trade with the United States is our most important relationship. Nine million American jobs depend on trade with Canada, and we have added 4.7 million new jobs to our economy since NAFTA came into force. With $2 billion in trade crossing our border every day, Canadians are worried about their jobs, and rightfully so. We need to ensure that the Prime Minister has a plan to protect high-paying jobs that are created in Canada as a result of NAFTA, including 550,000 auto sector jobs and 400,000 forestry jobs. There are also well over 210,000 aerospace jobs. We need a deal that is in the best interests of Canada.
I am now going to talk specifically about some of the benefits and opportunities for my home province and my constituents. The EU is Ontario's second-largest export destination and its second-largest trading partner. Once CETA is in force, it would eliminate tariffs on almost all of Ontario's exports, including 98% of EU tariff lines on Canadian goods becoming duty free for major Ontario exports, including metals and mineral products, manufactured goods, chemicals, and plastics. It would also provide our exporters with a competitive advantage over exporters from other countries that do not have a free trade agreement with the EU.
Being an Ontario member, we also want to thank the provincial Liberals because Ontario needs all the advantages it can get based on the current situation.
This agreement would give us access to a vast market for Canadian goods, as I have said before. It would benefit many sectors across our economy, including my riding, specifically in agriculture. In the agricultural and agri-food sectors, which I touched on before, CETA would make almost 94% of EU tariff lines on Canadian goods duty free. It would rise to 95% once all the phase-outs are complete.
This would include preferential, duty-free access for a specified amount of Canadian beef, pork, and bison. This is one of the largest industries in my riding. It provides employment and economic opportunities to many of the small communities in my area. Ensuring an advantageous position for our farmers and other sectors will help to ensure the long-term economic growth and prosperity for all Canadians.
As I mentioned, many people in my riding and across this country are concerned about their future, and rightfully so, with the cost of doing business in Ontario being sky high, and now with the increased taxes due to the provincial and federal Liberals. Many Canadians are struggling to get by. I am hopeful that this deal is signed and that the Liberal government's intention is to continue to build on the previous government's strong record of international trade. We are a trading nation, and we need to continue to increase market access for Canadian businesses and products.
I would like to thank all the men and women who have worked for years to get this agreement negotiated, drafted, and now before us here in the House of Commons. I look forward to questions from my colleagues.