Madam Speaker, I am thankful for the opportunity to speak to Bill C-13.
Before I commence my comments on this very important bill, I want to advise the House that I will be dividing my time with the member for Kings—Hants.
We have earnestly been discussing in this House, at an unprecedented time in our history and since perhaps the end of the Second World War, a tremendous rise in protectionism when it comes to the international trading order. We have spent the last 80 years or 85 years, since the end of the Second World War, creating a system that has championed free trade among countries, especially countries that are like-minded and democratic, to ensure that we have fewer barriers between the countries and that our goods and services can move more freely.
Many would argue it is not free trade per se, but that it is more liberalized trade or trade that is based on rules, in other words a rules-based trading system. However it is categorized is an appropriate categorization, because, from an economic principles perspective, it has allowed countries to really be able to leverage their competitive advantage.
Countries that are good at producing one thing can produce more of those goods or services and then exchange them with another country that may have a natural advantage in some other goods or services. This has allowed us all to collectively grow our economies and specialize in things that are good for us and help to create strong economies and good-paying jobs.
These free trade arrangements have also allowed us to put in rules, so we are not just dealing in isolation. We have rules in place around how to trade and to bring tariffs down so it is easier to export and import things, so they are cheaper for consumers. Having these free trade agreements has allowed for a dispute resolution mechanism in cases of dispute. This takes away what would have happened in previous times, when countries would engage in wars to resolve those disputes. We now have dispute settlement bodies that can do so as a matter of legal recourse based on these treaties.
However, what we have seen for the last couple of years, which has unfortunately been led by the United States, is a trend toward protectionism again. We have seen a trend toward imposing tariffs that has been causing tremendous hardship, as we are seeing from our experience here in Canada with Canadian workers and industries. This is not only counterproductive but also really bad for our economy and the economies we trade with, like that of the United States.
This is why we have a really important choice before us: whether we also enact protectionist policies and emulate what we see being done by the United States with imposed tariffs and the closing down of borders, or whether we pursue further liberalization with other like-minded countries and pursue other markets that are also quite keen to do business with Canadian companies and businesses, so we can create good-paying jobs for our workers right here in Canada.
I am of the view that we need to focus on the latter. What we need to do is continue on the path of further liberalization, of engaging and entering into agreements with other countries, so we can reduce barriers, reduce tariffs and allow for more Canadian businesses to do business, whether it is selling our goods or services or attracting investment to Canada so we can help support them. That should be our focus.
I really do feel we need to double, triple and quadruple down on that side of the equation, while also working with the United States to make them realize that the agreements we have had with them for a long, long time have been really good for our collective economies. First, there was the U.S.-Canada Free Trade Agreement, then NAFTA, the North American Free Trade Agreement, and then, subsequently, CUSMA, the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement.
In fact, 85% or so of our goods that get exported to the United States are still covered under CUSMA and are tariff-free, but of course, we need to continue to make sure those affected industries like automotive, lumber, and steel and aluminum are part of that free trade regime as well.
At the same time, this has been a really important moment of reckoning for Canada to really realize that we need to diversify our trade, that we need to look at other parts of this world to do more business. We cannot just be relying on the United States as our only or biggest market, as we have done up to this point, because, as we have seen, it could have a very serious impact on our businesses and on the respective communities that we all represent in the House.
That is why our government has really set a target of doubling our non-U.S. exports over the next decade. This means doubling it to about $300 billion in other parts of the world, which, of course, requires a lot of hard work. It requires that we engage with other countries that are growing, where the businesses are growing and the middle class is growing, and create opportunities for our businesses to be able to do work there.
This is why this bill is a very important step, because it is putting in place the accession protocol for the United Kingdom to become part of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, also known as CPTPP. This agreement, which Canada is part of as a founding member, has 11 countries that are part of it. By growing that agreement through including the United Kingdom, we are again creating more opportunities for our businesses to take advantage of this comprehensive trading relationship and have preferential access to a market like the United Kingdom.
As we know, the United Kingdom is really important to Canada in many respects, not only from a historical perspective but also for our businesses to have that very important access to that market. If we couple that with our agreement with the European Union, the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, CETA, this gives a tremendous opportunity for Canadian businesses to do business and sell things into such markets. This is why I really feel strongly that this bill is an important bill to pass, so that the United Kingdom can become part of the CPTPP.
However, our work is not stopping there. This is why we are negotiating with ASEAN countries and hope to complete that negotiation by next year. I was in Malaysia on behalf of the government, working with ASEAN countries to ensure that we can finish that agreement by early 2026. This is why we have resumed our conversations with Mercosur countries as well, which is extremely important. We have also launched trade negotiations with Thailand, the Philippines and India, so that we can open those markets as well. Most recently, we finished negotiations with countries like Indonesia and Ecuador.
We are doing a tremendous amount of work so that we can diversify our trade and create more opportunities for Canadian businesses to do business in other parts of the world. I think it is good for our economy. It is going to pay huge dividends, and this bill, Bill C-13, is a very important step in that direction. That is why I urge all members to support it. If the United Kingdom can be part of CPTPP, this will allow Canadian businesses to do more business in the United Kingdom and other member states.
