Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland tabled legislation Wednesday to implement the new NAFTA trade deal in Canada, on the same day U.S. President Donald Trump signed into law a major rewrite of the rules of trade with Canada and Mexico.
The Canadian bill, C-4, will amend dozens of laws — everything from the Broadcasting Act to the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation Act — to bring them in line with the text of the new trilateral trade deal. Mexico already has ratified the agreement.
According to the deal's text, the new Canada-U.S.-Mexican Trade Agreement will come into force "on the first day of the third month following the ratification of the last of the three parties." That countdown will begin when Canada has finished its parliamentary process and cabinet has given its final approvals.
Before the legislation was tabled, MPs voted on a ways and means motion on the bill. That motion — a parliamentary step required for bills dealing with tax matters — was supported by the Liberal, Conservative, NDP and Green caucuses and Independent MP Jody Wilson-Raybould.
The Bloc Québécois caucus was the only one to vote against the motion. The Bloc has cited concerns with the bill's effect on the aluminum sector.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau urged MPs to swiftly adopt the implementation bill...
This was excerpted from the 29 January 2020 edition of CBC News.