Benoît Sauvageau

[Lise Brouillette, November 5th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, today I wish to pay tribute to a business woman in my riding, Lise Brouillette. Ms. Brouillette, who has been Director General of the Société régionale de développement économique des Moulins since 1991, recently received the 1996 Prix Professionnelle en développement économique du Québec in appreciation of her contribution to the economic development of the des Moulins region.

As a woman very involved in the development of our region, she managed, with her dynamic approach, to create several thousand jobs and attract $50 million worth of investment since the beginning of her mandate at the SORDEM.

Last year, Ms. Brouillette was awarded the Assiette d'argent de l'Association des professionnels en développement économique du Québec. This woman is an outstanding example of how to succeed and a symbol of excellence for everyone.

Ms. Brouillette, the people of Des Moulins and the House of Commons salute you. Congratulations!

[Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act, November 5th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask a few questions to the hon. member who spoke after me. Questions which, I believe, are fairly simple and to which I hope to receive simple and clear answers.

First of all, I would like to make a comment. Through its parliamentary secretary, the government said that seminars would be held this week between the Department of International Trade and Palestinian authorities, when we are expected to deal with Bill C-61 today. Would it not be better to have these seminars or meetings before instead of after?

Now, here is my simple question: Could the hon. member tell us whether, according to him and his government, Palestinians control their economy and their territory?

[Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act, November 5th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the parliamentary secretary for his speech. You will, however, see in the next few minutes that the government has not earned an honourable mention for today's speech.

First of all, I must point out that the government added the bill to the order paper at the last minute yesterday evening, very likely on the assumption that, since all of the members of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade were out of the country on committee business, discussion of the bill this morning would not pose too much of a problem.

I would point out to them, however, that we are here and are well informed on the issue, so we too will be able to contest the stuff and nonsense we have just been treated to.

Let me begin by stating that we are totally in agreement with the Canada-Israel free trade agreement. We in Quebec are part of a free trade Canada. We will not oppose the principle of a free trade agreement between Canada and Israel. However, contrary to what the parliamentary secretary has just admitted, we are in a position to ask some questions about its timing. He says this is the right time. We, on the other hand, believe that it could not be a worse time for the ratification or implementation of such an agreement.

On October 9, I rose in this House in support of Bill C-61, the purpose of which was to implement the Canada-Israel free trade agreement the Government of Canada rushed to sign on July 31 last with the government of the State of Israel.

In that speech, however, I regretted the fact that everything surrounding the agreement had been kept secret and that there had been an unacceptable lack of consultation in the matter. I also referred to the dissatisfaction of Quebec's top of the line women's swimwear industry.

While my views are the same concerning the reservations expressed during second reading, I still believe that having a free trade agreement may be beneficial to the Quebec and the Canadian economy, and that this agreement will no doubt increase trade between our two countries.

The Bloc Quebecois is in favour of free trade, free trade agreements in general and of course the free trade agreement with Israel, but always at the appropriate time.

Since our first debate on Bill C-61 on October 9, I have now realized that the government is trying to get this agreement through as Parliament quickly and discreetly as possible. This raises many questions. If this agreement is so wonderful, why is the government trying to implement it on the sly, as it were? Because this agreement is becoming increasingly controversial from the political point of view. That is why.

Hon. members will agree that this morning's third reading is foolishly being rushed through, at a time when all members of the Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade, who heard a number of witnesses on Bill C-61 and are very well informed on this topic, are outside the country on committee business. Too bad for the minister and the parliamentary secretary: there are still a number of members in this House who know all about this issue and the protests that were heard before the committee.

These witnesses who came before us on October 29 told us, first of all, that the coming into force of the agreement on January 1, as proposed in Bill C-61, was a mistake. First, because it was not the right time to implement the agreement now that the peace process in the Middle East is in worse shape than ever before.

Arab groups also pointed out that this free trade agreement was perceived by many Arabs, in Canada and in the Middle East, as a sign that Canada supported the actions of Israel and the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. If this free trade

agreement were to come into force at this time, according to them it might even endanger the peace process in the Middle East.

As for the situation of Palestinians in the occupied territories-the agreement will automatically apply to the occupied territories as soon as it comes into effect-its stability is very fragile. Witnesses told us that the Palestinians do not even control their own territory, much less their economy, which means that today, to apply the Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement to Palestinian territory would be to recognize the albeit illegal control the State of Israel has over the Palestinian people.

The occupied territories are at this very moment practically in a state of war. That is what professors, Arab representatives and entrepreneurs came to tell members of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade. Interestingly, these witnesses had never been consulted previously by the department. After listening to this testimony, which put a different light on the matter, we tried to move amendments to Bill C-61, but to no avail.

Our goal, which was shared by many, including Liberal members, was to defer the implementation of the agreement until two conditions had been met. First, the peace process had to be well under way. It seems to me this is commendable.

Second, the negotiations between the State of Israel and the Palestinian authorities on the future of the occupied territories had to be completed. This amendment to clause 62 of Bill C-61 reads as follows. This is the text of the amendment presented by the Bloc Quebecois to the committee reviewing Bill C-61:

No order may be made by the Governor in Council under subsection (1) unless he has been advised by the committee of the House of Commons to which foreign affairs matters are normally referred that the committee is satisfied that

(a) the Government of the State of Israel has taken satisfactory steps to implement the agreement;

This is already in Bill C-61.

But we added the following:

(b) that the peace process between the State of Israel and the Palestinian authorities is well under way.

I will demonstrate in a moment that this amendment to the bill is completely consistent with the Canadian government's foreign policy. We are therefore justified in wondering why they voted against something that was consistent with their own policy.

And,

(c) that the negotiations between the State of Israel and the Palestinian authorities on the political status and economic development of the West Bank and Gaza Strip indicate that these two territories are about to gain effective control over their economic and internal affairs.

The chairman of the Standing Committee on foreign Affairs and International Trade ruled this amendment out of order for procedural reasons, on the basis that the changes were outside the scope of the bill.

We would also have liked to amend the preamble to the bill. You realize that, with the agreement having already been signed by the government, no changes can be made to the wording of the agreement per se. This in itself is quite frustrating, in a parliamentary system that claims to be democratic, for an elected representative like myself who does not have a say until it is too late to make any changes and the agreement has been signed.

We would have liked to amend the preamble since that is the only part of Bill C-61 that we are entitled to change. But, again for reasons of lack of consistency with the spirit of this agreement entered into quietly by the parties, we were told changes could not be made.

A clause might have been added, as suggested by some witnesses, to deal with human rights and democratic principles. The Bloc Quebecois considers it is essential that fundamental rights be respected, and such a principle should be an integral part of any agreement like this Canada-Israel free trade agreement.

The Minister for International Trade felt and still feels that the protection of human rights has no place in a free trade agreement, even though the free trade agreement between Israel and the European Union contains an interesting clause in this regard: "The relations between the parties, as well as all the provisions in this agreement, are based on respect for human rights and the democratic principles that underlie their domestic and international policies and constitute an essential part of this agreement".

If such an amendment to the Canada-Israel free trade agreement had been proposed, we would have supported it right away, but we were prevented from putting it forward by the committee on foreign affairs and international trade.

A provision on the Canadian government's commitment to the Middle East peace process could have been included in the preamble. Our government could have used this provision as a moral benchmark for its future actions in that part of the world.

A clause on Canada's foreign policy regarding the occupied territories would have been quite appropriate. I will get back to this glaring contradiction in the agreement a little later, but for now I will just point out how the Canadian government has violated its own foreign policy by signing the free trade agreement with Israel, since it also applies to the occupied territories.

The Canadian government has always maintained that these territories are illegally occupied by the State of Israel and that the Palestinians should be the ones in charge.

I will now quote Canada's foreign policy on the situation in that part of the world: "As far as the occupied territories are concerned, Canada does not recognize the permanency of Israeli control over the territories occupied since 1967 (the Golan Heights, the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip) and opposes any unilateral measure to determine in advance the results of negotiations, including the establishment of new settlements in the territories and unilateral measures to annex East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights. In Canada's opinion, these measures contravene international law and undermine the peace process".

Further on in this policy, the Canadian government addresses the rights of Palestinians, and I quote: "Canada recognizes that the legitimate rights of Palestinians that must be exercised in the context of peace negotiations, including the right to self-determination, must be respected".

This is not interference. It is simply consistency in foreign policy. We are in agreement with it, but when we asked the Liberal government to observe its foreign policy, we met with a categorical refusal.

We are in favour of establishing trade ties with the State of Israel and the Palestinian people. But we do not feel this is the right time to implement the Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement, given the present very worrisome situation in the Middle East.

We are aware of the commitment the Canadian government made to the State of Israel by signing the free trade agreement last July 31. But we feel that the political and social context is no longer the same as when the Canadian government began its negotiations with the State of Israel. Nor is it the same as when the agreement was finalized and signed.

Furthermore, even the Israeli government in power has changed. We cannot deny the negative impact on the peace process of the death of former Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, almost exactly one year ago.

For some months now, the Middle East peace process has been taking a turn for the worse. Negotiations have practically come to a standstill. Exchanges of violence have continued since the opening of the Jerusalem tunnel last September. Recently, the Israeli government approved an increase in its budget, apparently in order to bump up the number of troops at the border with Syria in the event of war.

Spending related to Jewish settlement went up by 90 per cent recently, although it is known for a fact that the principal source of disagreement between Israelis and Palestinians has to do with Jewish settlements. The situation is far from ideal and the implementation of the agreement in this context is far from appropriate. It is true that the government feels that this agreement can help the peace process by increasing trade.

That is what we thought also, but some very well informed witnesses have explained that, on the contrary, the timing of the agreement will be harmful instead, and will convince the Palestinians that Canada is siding with the Israelis, contrary to its foreign policy. Let me repeat, we are not against the Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement, but we do question its timing. The worrisome situation in that part of the world is obvious to anyone who watches the news.

What are we to do if the peace process is not successful in the medium term? This is a legitimate question, and my answer is that, for once, we must question the type of economic partner Canada wants to have.

What is more, it is our opinion, as it was the opinion of the Canadian government in its foreign policy statement from which I have already quoted, that the government of Israel is occupying the Gaza Strip and the West Bank illegally, in flagrant violation of international law.

How, then, can we approve having the agreement apply automatically to these territories, without the Palestinian authorities' accepting the Agreement, and particularly without the Palestinian people's having total control over its territory and its economy, so as to reap the full benefit of this free trade agreement?

The government tells us, as the parliamentary secretary did in his speech, that it is pursuing negotiations and exchanging letters with Palestinian leaders. It seems to me that instead of ratifying so quickly the Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement we could wait for the completion of these processes. We will be able to study the letters and regulations and adopt a more enlightened position on the issue.

During the last committee hearing, the parliamentary secretary came in with a new card in hand, saying: "The official opposition members of the foreign affairs committee have brought forward very good arguments in the last few hearings, so there is something we forgot to tell you. It is true that we have now been in negotiation for more than a year. It is also true that we forgot to consult several groups, so some of them came to see me. We forgot to inform you that we had an exchange of correspondence with the Palestinians that we will make public after the vote on Bill C-61".

He also said: "It is also true that we forgot to tell you about some regulations but we intend to make them public after the debate on Bill C-61 in the House. Do not worry, you will see that we did some good work. Have no fear, you will see the documents but we cannot show them to you immediately because we have not had time to

prepare them. We forgot to tell you about them, but we are informing you now".

This took place no later that one week ago. Why did the Liberals bring forward new arguments just a few days before the debate on Bill C-61 in this House? They knew very well that the present situation would not help them and that the lack of consistency of their foreign affairs policy would not help them either.

Therefore, they had to use some pretty "bright" subterfuge in order to get us to say: "Listen, support this agreement, support Bill C-61, then we will make public the letters exchanged between the Palestinian authorities and the Canadian government. Then, we will make public the regulations designed to include the Palestinian people, or at least to ensure they fully benefit from this free trade agreement. Do not worry."

But, given what we have seen for three years, for those who have known the Liberal Party over the years, there is reason to be somewhat concerned, at least a little concerned when we are told after a few months, a few years of negotiation: "Afterwards, you will see all the documents, all the papers." Why were we told that the first time only last week? This also is a little strange.

As I said, if we are given those letters, we will be able to analyze them and to have a more informed discussion. It is true that, until now, Palestinians have not opposed the application of the Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement in their territory.

They probably feel that this agreement is an unexpected opening onto a foreign country and therefore can help them. It is exactly for this reason that Palestinian authorities must be part of the negotiations and that their situation should not be dealt in their absence with the Israeli government, as the Canadian government is trying to do now.

This is such a current issue that this very morning, the French and English dailies contained articles dealing with the Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement. I quote a report from Associated Press entitled "Call to Israel's Boycott as the Cairo Summit approaches", from which I will read some brief excerpts. It is a very relevant report that appeared this morning in La Presse .

It reads as follows:

The Egyptian Union of Chambers of Commerce has called on its members to boycott Israel and to refrain from all bilateral or multilateral co-operation with it, including with the State of Israel.

Further on, it reads:

We reject any economic co-operation with Israel so long as a global political settlement has not been reached in the Near East.

That was said by the representative of the Egyptian Chambers of Commerce.

Later on, the article stated:

Palestinian manufacturers decided to boycott the economic summit by way of protest against Israel's sealing off their territories, which is choking their economy.

The same kind of report can be found in English newspapers in Canada today and probably everywhere in the world. This is no secret. Liberals tried to keep the negotiations secret for a lot of things, but this is no secret. The Palestinian situation is now well known.

Moreover, as mentioned in these articles, one must keep in mind the situation in the occupied territories. For the time being, the Israelis are controlling the territories and their economy. Since February 1996, the territories have been sealed off almost permanently, preventing Palestinians from harvesting their crops and even working.

According to an American study, Israel is using this border-closing policy to prevent the influx of competitive Palestinian farm products and manufactured goods on the Israeli market, thus hampering all attempts of the Palestinian economy to take off, and increasing its dependency on Israel's economy.

We can only presume that the free trade agreement will make the situation worse, increasing Israel's control over the Palestinian economy. On the other hand, it should be noted that the economic life in the occupied territories is nearly at a standstill. Foreign trade has just about disappeared. The economy is working at only 3 or 4 per cent of its capacity and, this spring, the unemployment rate was between 60 and 70 per cent in the Gaza Strip and between 40 and 50 per cent on the West Bank, not to mention a very tense climate and numerous violent flare-ups.

The same article went on to say, and I quote:

According to a report published last week by the UN, as a result of the repeated sealing off of the territories, the Palestinian GDP has dropped by 23 per cent over the past four years, and the per capita income has declined by 39 per cent over the same period.

To conclude, we are questioning the coming into force in the occupied territories of the free trade agreement signed by Israel, as long as the Palestinians have not agreed to it and the Palestinian people are not in full control of their territory and economy.

We believe that this is not the time to implement such an agreement now that the peace process has been stopped and is in very bad shape indeed. As long as we are not convinced, as we mentioned in our amendments, that the explosive situation in the Middle East has been defused, we believe that the coming into force of Bill C-61-and consequently of the free trade agreement-should be at least delayed. We believe that the coming into force of this agreement on January 1st, 1997, and the passing now

of Bill C-61 send the wrong message to Canadians, the world in general and the Arab world in particular.

Given the evidence we heard on October 29 and the new developments, and since Israel is preparing for war by releasing new funds for this purpose, we would think that, on the contrary, our intervention at this critical point in time could have a negative impact on the peace process.

It would be much better to encourage the Israeli and the Palestinians to seriously negotiate the restoration of peace in the Middle East and, meanwhile, to suspend this agreement, which could favour one of the two parties involved.

We must put pressure on the Israeli government to respect international law and therefore the Palestinian people. The Canadian government must have the political courage to put the agreement on hold. The Bloc Quebecois, and probably the Reform Party, would support such an action. The Bloc Quebecois totally disagrees with the approach chosen by the Liberal government for the signing of free trade agreements. The secrecy, the lack of consultation are totally unacceptable and contrary to what we are being told.

It is unacceptable that the Canadian government would negotiate and sign free trade agreements by itself and without any transparency. This is what the federal government did in the case of the Canada-Israel agreement and it is doing the same thing for the Canada-Chile agreement, which is now being negotiated.

Once the text of the agreement is published, it will be too late to change it because the agreement will already have been signed. What a remarkable democracy! Then they will ask this House to discuss the Canada-Chile free trade agreement, as they are doing now for Israel, saying: "The only element you have the power to change is the date of coming into force". And even on that point, the Liberal majority in committee will decide if the date should be modified or not.

Even if the Liberal majority decides, according to its convictions and just as it did at the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade, to postpone the date the agreement comes into force, it will be very simple, they will only change the players. The government takes the knowledgeable players and puts them on the bench, puts them aside, then sends in people who have not heard about this free trade agreement because, as hard working as they are, as sharp as they are, they are part of other committees and have other issues to examine. The government sends them to raise their hands in committee and say: "Agreed".

They were not present at previous committee meetings. They did not hear witnesses, they have only influenced the government party's decision, as opposed to the beliefs of men and women who were sitting on the foreign affairs committee and who had to be replaced at the last minute so that the international trade minister could have his bill passed clause by clause.

Even the clerk had to be replaced so that another one could come and tell us that our amendments were out of order, even though our amendments were totally compatible with clause 62 of the bill.

It is relatively simple. What we were supposed to put forward dealt with the coming into force of the Canada-Israel free trade agreement, that is: Is the timing appropriate, given the current situation in Israel and the occupied territories? We are sending a signal to that part of the world that Canada is going against its foreign policy as defined by the government, not by us, as this is not the position of the official opposition here but the position of the Canadian government.

Does the Canadian government want to send a signal to the rest of the world that it believes everything is well with the Palestinians, everything is well with the Israelis, everything is well in that part of the world, and that now we can sign a free trade agreement, do business with everybody involved, even though Palestinians have no control over their economy, even though Palestinians have no control over their territory, even though the peace process has been significantly disrupted? No.

According to the Canadian government, this position is a figment of the imagination of the official opposition, this position is unrealistic. News bulletins, newspaper articles must have been made up, they must not be true. And we, the Canadian government, they say, are prepared to send this signal to the entire world, that is, that we can do business, no matter what the situation is, with that part of the world. That is what the Bloc Quebecois wonders about.

We will continue to ask questions to the government party before supporting Bill C-61. I want to repeat that we totally agree with a Canada-Israel free trade agreement, but only at the appropriate time.

[Manganese Based Fuel Additives Act, October 28th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise today in this House to reiterate that the Bloc Quebecois is opposed to Bill C-29.

In fact, after listening to our government colleagues' speeches this morning and the previous speeches at second reading, we are more convinced than ever that every one of us should at this time-I repeat, at this time-vote against Bill C-29.

This bill is aimed at prohibiting the importation into Canada of and the interprovincial trade in MMT, without any serious evidence that it is harmful to health or the environment. It is also in flagrant violation of NAFTA, and we should be particularly careful with this.

The Bloc Quebecois is therefore opposed to this bill at third reading. We stress that we will always oppose Bill C-29 as it now stands, because it is unacceptable for a Minister of the Environment to try to legislate on international trade. We will not support the roundabout way in which the Minister of the Environment is using legislation to ban the importation of and interprovincial trade in a product under the pretext that this product is harmful to health and the environment.

If the Minister of the Environment is really convinced that MMT is dangerous, he should also ban the manufacturing and use of this product. This bill prohibits the importation of this product, but not its use and manufacturing. Yet, according to their fine rhetoric, MMT is harmful to people's health. In that case, why are we still allowed to use and produce it?

Frankly, Bill C-29 is not aimed in the right direction. On the contrary, it still allows the use and production of MMT, but only within a province's borders.

Some Liberal members have accused us of not being concerned with the environment and Canadians' health. You know this is not

true. Like all the members of this House, the members of the Bloc Quebecois are very concerned with the well-being of Quebecers and Canadians alike. That is why we have asked that the government give us clear and irrefutable proof that MMT is harmful.

Without doubting their word, we would like them to prove their point, which they have not been done. I will explain it to some extent in my remarks. When a serious study is available, we will be able to make an informed decision. But so far, the Minister of the Environment and his colleagues have not provided any real reason or hard facts in support of their claim.

At this stage of the debate on Bill C-29, the government has yet to demonstrate the need for such legislation or its merits, which suggests to us that the real reasons for wanting this bill passed are of a purely commercial and electoral nature.

Like his predecessor, the Minister of the Environment is favouring corn producers in western Canada and especially those in Ontario. By banning MMT, whose sole producer is Ethyl, the minister is ensuring that the only alternative to MMT will be ethanol, since fuel without additives is not foreseeable in the short and medium term.

For the Minister of the Environment like for Machiavelli's main character in The Prince , the end justifies the means. It has been clear to us for quite a while already that the minister really cares much less than he says about the environment and the health of Canadians and cares much more about pleasing western and Ontario corn producers, who he hopes will vote Liberal in the next election.

Ignoring every recommendation made by his colleagues in this House, not only Bloc Quebecois and Reform Party members, but also the Minister for International Trade, the Minister of the Environment continues crusading against MMT, but we must recognize that he has a very small army behind him.

To achieve his end, he is prepared to sacrifice millions of dollars in financial compensation to Ethyl, an American company, which filed notice, on September 10, to claim $276 million Canadian in damages from the Canadian government for presumably breaching the provisions of NAFTA. While his government boasts about making job creation its number one priority-they said it over and over during the weekend-the minister is prepared to sacrifice jobs in the oil industry.

He would even go as far as to subject Canadians to yet another hike in the price of gas. Of course, nothing is too costly when one wants to please a lobby.

Despite all opposition, the environment minister and the Liberal government will probably get Bill C-29 passed. However, the government's modus operandi regarding this issue confirms once again the lack of judgment of some of its members.

When will the Liberal government finally act in a responsible and serious manner, as we have been asking, since, once again, the government's action does not make sense.

We tried to put three short questions to the government. Why prohibit a product which, in the opinion of Health Canada, does not pose any risk to the health of Canadians? Unless I am mistaken, Health Canada is a Canadian organization. As I said about Statistics Canada in another speech, if the government is not pleased, it simply removes the chairperson and replaces him or her.

Why prohibit the importation and interprovincial trade of such a product, rather than its production and use? If it is so harmful to one's health, then we should prohibit its production and use.

Why violate a trade agreement which we duly signed and run the risk of having to pay a compensation of $276 million Canadian, if not more? These are the same Liberals that used to be passionate about free trade agreements. Historically, Liberals have been free traders and they should know free trade agreements very well, or at least respect them.

These are the three short questions the environment minister and his colleagues should have answered in earlier speeches. But they did not do so, first because there is no rational answer to these questions, but also because, once again, they simply do as they please. The Liberal government does not care at all about the opinion of Canadians, who protested in large numbers against Bill C-29. As with many other issues, the government turns a deaf ear.

This is a shame. In its present form, Bill C-29 is inappropriate and we have a duty, as members representing Quebecers and Canadians, to oppose this legislation. A number of stakeholders from various areas, including six provincial governments, vigorously oppose Bill C-29. I join my voice to theirs to invite all members of Parliament, including Liberals, to vote against this legislation.

The government must do its homework and table a proper and rigorous bill.

In conclusion, I want to table an amendment to the amendment of the Reform Party to Bill C-29. I propose, seconded by the hon. member for Laurentides:

That the amendment be amended by adding the following:

"and particularly, the impact of the said Bill on trade between Canada and the United States".

[Broadcasting, October 22nd, 1996]

In that case, Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Canadian Heritage will have no problem tabling the letters in this House. We have one from DMX referring to this. Will the minister agree to table the letters?

[Broadcasting, October 22nd, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister for International Trade.

Yesterday, the Minister of Canadian Heritage told us she had granted a broadcasting license to DMX, an audio programming company, although Canadian and francophone content will represent only 20 per cent and 13 per cent respectively of its programming, well below Canadian content broadcasting requirements.

Since the heritage minister's decision was made in response to pressure exerted by the U.S. Secretary of State for Trade on her Canadian counterpart, will the Minister for International Trade release all the correspondence between them?

[Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement, October 21st, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, when the minister says he has consulted, I would like to quote him Claude Gilbert's reaction: "When I learned by accident that Ottawa was negotiating with Israel, I was terrified". There was no consultation.

In order to resolve this situation, which may well increase unemployment, primarily in Quebec, will the minister promise today to negotiate access to the European textile market at the earliest opportunity, and in the meantime to impose equivalent tariffs on Israeli products in this sector?

[Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement, October 21st, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister for International Trade.

Canada recently negotiated behind closed doors a free trade agreement with Israel. Given that the Israeli swimwear industry imports its fabric from Europe without paying duty, unlike our companies, this treaty may kill the top of the line swimwear

industry, which is located primarily in Quebec, thus costing hundreds of jobs.

Despite the fact that the official opposition raised this important problem last May, and in light of the present discontent of the swimwear industry, how can the minister explain that he has done nothing to protect this up and coming industry with its job creation potential?

[An Act To Implement The Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement, October 9th, 1996]

Madam Speaker, first, I know that there is no question or comment period but, since I listened so very carefully, almost religiously, to the speech by the Minister of International Trade, you will still allow me to make some comments on his speech. Maybe he will respond to my comments in a future meeting with yet other comments or answers.

What surprised me the most was that he could not praise enough free trade with the United States, with Asia, and with the whole world as he even went as far as to say. This runs somewhat contrary to Liberal speeches of a few years past, when the Free Trade Agreement was being negotiated with the United States. We are very happy with this about-turn by the Liberal members, who are now all for the superb idea of free trade put forward by what is probably a majority of people from Quebec. We are very happy to see these conversions on the part of our colleagues.

As for job creation, I know that many questions are asked and that a lot of figures are given, but I have a very simple question that Canadians and Quebecers probably also ask themselves. According to the minister, for every million in revenue, thousands of jobs are created each time a free trade agreement is signed or Team Canada goes on a mission. If all these jobs have been created, how come the unemployment rate, which was approximately 10.5 or 11 per cent when they took office, is still 10.5 or 11 per cent today?

Whatever the number of questions of Statistics Canada, the finance minister, the Minister of Human Resources Development or anyone else, if they are that good, how is it that the unemployment rate remains the same? That is another question I ask myself.

But there is another part of his speech that I found. And here I would look in the dictionary for synonyms for the qualities mentioned earlier by my colleague and I would apply them to that part of his speech.

When he said that free trade with Israel would solve practically every problem, would create lots of jobs, and so on, he forgot to mention three relatively important aspects. First of all, political or economic stability did not seem to be a prerequisite for Canada to sign a free trade agreement with Israel. So it is possible to trade and to talk about job creation with a country that does not enjoy complete political and economic stability.

We just have to watch television or read the international section in the newspapers to see that, if it is so good for Canada to sign a free trade deal with Israel in terms of job creation, it does not necessarily mean that political instability makes Quebec's economy unhealthy. If we apply what the minister said to the situation in Quebec, that statement is true.

If the Canadian government is so happy to sign a free trade deal with Israel, a country that does $450 million a year in trade with Canada-and that is the minister's own figure-I think we can assume that it would be all the more happy to sign such a deal with a country that does $250 billion in trade with Canada. So, the Canadian government and the minister, who will hopefully still be there when the time comes, will promote job creation and free trade without saying a word about political or economic stability.

We will certainly keep this part of the minister's speech in mind and maybe one day, during an election or a referendum campaign, we will be able to use it and say: "If it was so good at $450 million, it certainly will not be worse at $200 billion".

Those were the few comments I wanted to make following the speech by the Minister of International Trade.

Now, I can say that we are at last very happy to be able to debate this bill, Bill C-61 on the free trade agreement with Israel. The day has finally come when we have an opportunity to speak to the free trade agreement between our country and Israel. I admit that it gives me great pleasure.

I must, however, point out that the Bloc Quebecois deplores the fact that everything surrounding this agreement has been kept so secret until now. Later on in my speech I will substantiate this.

The Bloc Quebecois will vote in favour of Bill C-61, and enthusiastically welcomes the signing of a Canada-Israel free trade agreement. We hope that this agreement will increase trade with

Israel, and subsequently with all the other countries in the world, as the minister said.

We have always been in favour of the globalization of markets and free trade agreements. This agreement will benefit companies both in Quebec and in Canada, as well as in Israel. Our businesses in Quebec and in Canada need access to foreign markets in order to develop. The signing of a free trade agreement is therefore welcome in the present economic situation. Furthermore, the Export Development Corporation, the EDC, has funds available for Quebec and Canadian companies wishing to do business with the State of Israel.

Although the Bloc Quebecois encourages increased trade between Canada and the State of Israel, because we believe that it can contribute to the peace process and to stability in the region, we call on the Canadian government to ensure that the State of Israel respects fundamental Canadian democratic values and human rights.

In addition, we call on the Liberal government to urge the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, to re-establish and maintain peace with the Palestinian people, so as to stabilize the situation in the Middle East.

We suggest to the Canadian government that it not exclude the Palestinians from trade resulting from this agreement. Discussions with Palestinian representatives are therefore necessary in order to look at the possibility of extending the agreement to this territory.

With a population of some six million, the State of Israel, like Quebec, has a democratic system of government, a flourishing private sector and modern financial markets. It has a well developed economy based on high technology. Its main industries are financial services, consumer products, tourism and construction. Its average annual growth rate is 5 per cent, and this, since 1985. Its record year is 1993, when the rate reached 10 per cent; a year later, the rate fell back to 6.8 per cent.

Israel is a door open on the Middle East for Canada, as the minister pointed out sooner. Canada has been among Israel's partners since the country's inception in 1948. In fact, Canada recognized Israel in December 1948. We have been trading with Israel for many years. We began trading with this country as soon as it was created.

Various bilateral committees have been struck these last few years by Canada and Israel. We have, for example, the Canada-Israel Committee, which was formed in 1970 to discuss subjects such as human rights, the money issue; the Canada-Israel Chamber of Commerce; the Canada-Israel Foundation for Industrial Research and Development, which has been in existence since 1994; and, finally, the Canada-Israel Joint Committee, which was established a few years ago to discuss commercial issues of common interest to both countries.

At the present time, our trade with Israel represents between $450 to $500 million a year. Of course, these figures do not compare with those for trade between the United States and Israel, which amounts to $1 billion a day. But with the free trade accord that we are about to approve, we can hope for a significant increase of our trade with Israel.

There is a trade potential to be explored in Israel by businesses in Quebec and Canada. Israel's external trade accounts for 25 per cent of its GDP. Its imports amounted to $24.9 billion in 1994, and its exports totalled 6.4 billion in the same year.

In 1995, Canadian exports to Israel reached a total of $216 million Canadian, distributed mainly among the following products: aluminum, machinery, drugs, wood, pulp and paper. In the same year, Canadian imports from Israel amounted to $240 million, mainly in diamonds, which is practical, clothing, machinery and electrical equipment.

The main trading partners of Israel are the United States and the European Union. Israel signed free-trade agreements with both several years ago.

The agreement establishing a free-trade area between the United States and Israel was signed on April 22, 1985 and came into effect on September 1 the same year. A declaration on trade in services was also signed at the same time. A joint committee was established to supervise the implementation of the agreement and hold consultations on issues regarding the functioning and interpretation of the agreement.

This committee studies ways to improve bilateral trade. The main purpose of this agreement was to abolish import duties on all products, beginning January 1, 1995. Duties on some imports considered sensitive are being phased out on several years in order to allow production branches of both countries do adapt to increasing competition.

With respect to agriculture, the agreement, while recognizing that it would be desirable to open up markets by eliminating customs duties, allows both countries to apply other restrictions in order to maintain their respective price support systems.

The free trade agreement between Israel and the European Community was signed in May 1975. The agreement covers all industrial products, some agricultural products and some processed agricultural products. In 1976, an additional industrial, technical and financial protocol was included in this agreement. The implementation of the agreement ended in 1989. Since then, another agreement was signed, this time with the European Union, which has been in effect since January 1, 1996.

In September 1992, Israel signed a free trade agreement with the European Free Trade Association, also known as EFTA. The objectives of this agreement are to promote the harmonious development of economic relations between the EFTA countries and Israel, to ensure fair competition in trading between the signatories, to eliminate obstacles to trade and thus contribute to the harmonious development and expansion of world trade and, finally, to improve co-operation between EFTA member countries and Israel. EFTA members are responsible for about 11 per cent of goods imported by Israel and receive 4 per cent of its exports. Under the agreement, which came into effect on January 1, 1993, customs duties were eliminated in the case of bilateral trade in industrial products, fish products and other seafood, as well as for processed agricultural products.

The signing of the Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement will put Canadian businesses that trade with Israel on the same footing as American and European businesses that trade with this country.

On April 29, 1994, the government of the State of Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization, the PLO, signed an economic agreement, which gives the Palestinian authority extensive powers over taxation and the regulation of trade and banking, as part of the autonomy of the Gaza Strip and the region of Jericho. The agreement is to be extended to the West Bank. It is more or less the equivalent of a customs union, with two exceptions. One concerns the importation of agricultural products and labour in Israel, while the other concerns a difference in customs tariffs when trading with other countries, tariffs the Palestinians may apply to an agreed list of imports to be used within the territories.

The agreement allows the Palestinian authority to collect taxes and import duties lower than those in effect in Israel, on a wide range of products, but only to meet the needs of Gaza and Jericho. All trading in goods between Israel and the Gaza Strip and the Jericho region will be free, with the exception of agricultural products, for a period of five years.

The State of Israel has been a contracting party to the general agreement on tariffs and trade, also known as GATT, since 1962, and is a signatory to the WTO agreement.

Bill C-61 before the House today will implement the Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement signed last July by the Canadian government and the State of Israel. Clause 8 of the bill states that the House has approved CIFTA.

Part II of the bill deals with the amendments necessary to bring Canadian laws into conformity with the agreement. The following acts will be amended: the Canadian International Trade Tribunal Act, the Export and Import Permits Act, the Customs Act and the Customs Tariff Act.

If everything goes as planned, the agreement should come into force on January 1st, 1997. However, we suggest postponing the coming into force to a later date if the government is not satisfied that the State of Israel is really ready to implement this agreement, as provided under clause 62 of Bill C-61.

This clause states that the Governor in Council may not issue an order bringing the agreement into force unless satisfied the government of Israel has taken satisfactory steps to implement it.

The purpose of the free trade agreement, which was signed on July 31 in Toronto by the Canadian Minister of International Trade and Israel's Minister of Foreign Affairs, is to eliminate trade barriers and facilitate the movement of goods between Canada and Israel.

Article 2.1 of the agreement provides for the elimination of customs duties on all manufactured goods, except in two cases, as of January 1st 1997, Special treatment is provided for farm products.

As requested by Israel, a special treatment applies to certain cottons, as is the case for women's bathing suits, as requested by the Bloc Quebecois. Customs duties on these items will be phased out over a period of two years and a half to be completely eliminated by July 1st, 1999.

This exception made in favour of women' bathing suits is the result of considerable pressure from Quebec companies, including Shan, in Laval, and the Bloc Quebecois. Indeed, the Bloc raised the issue in the House on several occasions, bringing to the government's attention the concerns of Quebec bathing suit and lingerie manufacturers with regard to a possible free trade agreement with Israel.

These companies were concerned because Israeli businesses benefit from the elimination of customs duty on European textiles, thanks to the free trade agreement with European countries, and so they have a definite advantage in the area of manufacturing costs for bathing suits and lingerie since they can save 25 to 35 per cent on the purchase of raw material. We must remember that Israel is Canada's main competitor in the area of bathing suits and lingerie.

In 1993, the bathing suit and lingerie industry represented 10 per cent of all the Canadian industry and the annual sales of that sector reached approximately $450 millions. That equals the total trade between Canada and Israel.

We must also mention that following the Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement, the North American Free Trade Agreement and the Uruguay Round, businesses in the fabric and garment industry had to make very major adjustments. It was quite normal that any new free trade agreement would upset them.

In 1995, Canadian customs tariffs on bathing suits and lingerie were anywhere from 18 to 25 per cent. The progressive elimination of these tariffs over a period of two and a half years is a lesser evil for businesses manufacturing bathing suits. That two and a half year period will allow Canadian and Quebec businesses to prepare themselves and to adjust to the competition coming from Israel.

Furthermore, we hope that delay will give the Canadian government time to negotiate the elimination of customs tariffs on European textiles for our Canadian businesses, as the bathing suit and lingerie manufacturers have requested for several months and as Israeli businesses have obtained.

The Bloc Quebecois regrets the fact that lingerie is not one of the exceptions mentioned in the agreement. Lingerie manufacturers, who very often are also bathing suit manufacturers, made representations to that end as well and their reasons for requesting an adjustment period in order to prepare for the opening of the Canadian market to their competitors are just as valid as those of the bathing suit manufacturers. But the lingerie manufacturers were the big losers in the negotiation process, as is all too often the case.

The free trade agreement between Canada and Israel refers to several provisions of the GATT and WTO agreements, for instance those regarding the trade dispute settlement process. Canadian and Israeli cultural industries are not subject to the agreement.

The negotiations with Israel concerning this free trade agreement started in November 1994. During the two years of negotiations, few people and few companies were consulted as regards the contents of the agreement. In fact, even the signing of the agreement was kept a secret. It seems to be the policy of this government to negotiate in secret and without consulting anyone free trade agreements having a direct effect on the Canadian public. The fact of the matter is that Canadians and Canadian companies have a right to know and should know ahead of time-not after all the decisions have been made, ahead of time-what trade agreements the Canadian government is negotiating and signing on their behalf.

Before the House adjourned for the summer in June, we made repeated inquiries of the office of the Minister of International Trade about the status of the free trade agreement negotiations with Israel. We were told that it was out of the question that any decision be made before the House reconvened in September. That is why we were very surprised to read in the July 31 or August 1 newspapers that everything had been signed. So we could fully co-operate and simply do our job, we asked to be kept informed on the status of negotiations between Canada and Israel.

International trade officials told us that things were at a standstill for the summer, that they would come back in September and inform us of any developments. This shows that, as I said earlier, the other side would rather negotiate behind closed doors.

Furthermore, these businesses must be kept informed. Quebec and Canadian businesses also have the right to express their opinions and to be duly consulted before the decisions affecting them are taken. History repeats itself with the free trade negotiations with Chile. Although we learned that the agreement should be signed when the President of Chile, Mr. Frei, comes to Canada in mid-November, we still do not know the content or even the main elements of the agreement.

Again, as in the case of the free trade agreement with the state of Israel, Quebec and Canadian businesses were not duly consulted before the agreement was finalized. Again, the Canadian people will find out the details just a few months before the provisions affecting trade and the future of our businesses come into effect.

The government must listen to what businesses, social, cultural and environmental groups, associations and anyone else have to say before signing similar trade agreements with other countries.

In conclusion, the Bloc Quebecois will vote in favour of Bill C-61, but we want to issue a serious warning about the government's tendency to negotiate and sign free trade treaties on the sly.

[The Foreign Extraterritorial Measures Act, October 9th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for Esquimalt-Juan de Fuca for the very interesting speech he made, which had both an historical and an international aspect to it.

I was a bit amazed to hear him applaud the statements made by the Minister of International Trade and say that Canada is big, beautiful, strong, nice, fast, etc. He must have used a dictionary of synonyms to come up with all these nice qualities for the Minister of International Trade and the government. By the way, the minister is indeed very nice, but the comments made by the Reform member do need to be toned down a bit.

If the American bill was so disgusting and so totally unacceptable to Canada, as the hon. member put it, can he tell us why the Canadian government waited seven months before introducing Bill C-54? That is how long it took.

So, my first question concerns the delay. Is the hon. member pleased with the "speedy" intervention of the government, with this seven months delay, since the U.S. government introduced the Helms-Burton law back in March?

I also have a second question for my Reform colleague. He also praised the government for following in the wake of the European Union, instead of using the power it was granted on July 29, as I said earlier, and showing some leadership by appealing to a panel under NAFTA. Why is my Reform colleague so glad to see the Canadian government following in the wake of the European Union now, in October, when the government could have challenged the U.S. bill back in July through a NAFTA panel?

So, the two questions I have are very simple. First, why is the hon. member so glad that it took seven months? Second, why is he so glad that we are following in the tracks of the European Union?