OTTAWA — Long-time Canadian trade negotiator Steve Verheul says Bill C-282 is a political signal and not likely to threaten future deals.
There has been a lot of opposition to the bill from grain and livestock exporters who say entire deals are at risk if the supply managed sectors are kept off the table. The bill is currently in second reading in the Senate.
Speaking at the Canadian Federation of Agriculture annual meeting today, Verheul said each side always has its “red lines” when talks start, so they aren’t really a surprise.
“I really see this more as a political signal of support to the dairy sector and to supply management more broadly,” he said.
“We’ve already negotiated with most of the major dairy exporters to Canada.
“I don’t think there’s actually an imminent threat. This is about politics, about support. I don’t expect this to have a huge impact on negotiations going forward.”
Verheul said Canada would prefer that politics be kept out of trade and let markets operate. He said while the World Trade Organization at the moment is fundamentally broken, bilateral agreements are working well and where most efforts need to take place.
He was Canada’s chief negotiator from 2017-21, working on the new U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement and the free trade deal with Europe. Between 2003 and 2009 he was Canada’s chief agricultural negotiator
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