Customs union needed, Emerson maintains

February 4, 2009

4 February 2009

Customs union needed, Emerson maintains

The following article is excerpted from the 4 February 2009 edition of “globeandmail.com”.

Former Conservative trade minister David Emerson says Ottawa should seek a customs union with the United States - part of a closer economic relationship he says is necessary to avoid being sideswiped by U.S. trade actions such as the Buy American provision that threatens Canadian steel mills.

He said Canadians must abandon any "anti-American paranoia" and focus on building a more secure and predictable trading relationship with the United States - one that shelters Canada from the vagaries of U.S. politics.

"We're kind of suffering the death of one thousand protectionist cuts and have been since 9/11 and a lot of this is rooted pretty deeply in Congress and the U.S. political system," he said…

Mr. Emerson said overcoming U.S. protectionism will require a bold pitch to Americans - one that takes into account Canadian trade concerns and U.S. worries over security.

"We need to not be timid, [but] rise above the fray and talk about the need for a much more fundamental enhancement of the Canada-U.S. relationship," Mr. Emerson added, saying this ultimately must cover everything from the movement of workers to the common security of the continent.

"Maybe we should be talking about a customs union and enhanced labour mobility and enhanced recognition of worker credentials."…

"With 80 per cent plus of our exports oriented to the U.S. market, Canada is going to have to start seriously thinking about how we can secure our economic future. Because you can't simply sit and be at the whim of short-term political measures in the U.S. and [still] be responsible to Canadians."

Mr. Emerson isn't worried that Canada may lose sovereignty under a customs union, suggesting instead that Ottawa would gain influence in a joint trade policy deal.

He noted the European Union was once a customs union and said the trend today is to secure more predictable trading relations….


Topic(s): 
Canadian Economy & Politics
Information Source: 
Canadian News Channel
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