Harper sells Canada out to European-based multinational corporations

Wants to do a free trade deal that costs Canada its sovereignty and lets multinational corporations own us

By Dylan Penner, Council of Canadians – 

The Council of Canadians and Canadian Community Economic Development Network today warned premiers to keep municipalities, water utilities and other provincially important agencies out of the Canada-EU free trade negotiations as premiers were set to discuss the proposed agreement during their annual Council of the Federation meeting.

“The provinces are under enormous pressure to come up with an offer on local spending, or government procurement, that will satisfy the excessive demands of EU trade negotiators and the Harper government,” says Stuart Trew, trade campaigner with the Council of Canadians.

The EU wants public hydro, public water and most major cities banned from applying local preferences or other forms of social, ethical or sustainable criteria to public tendering.

“Democratically elected provincial and municipal governments must maintain control over how they spend public money and defend their right to pursue purchasing policies intended to benefit their local communities,” says Brendan Reimer, prairies regional co-ordinator for the Canadian Community Economic Development Network. “This is critical at a time when the public are really counting on their local governments to put tax dollars toward the creation of jobs and supports for business in their local communities.”

The provinces are for the first time at the negotiating table in talks on a proposed Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA). The EU insisted that provinces be included in the Agreement, giving EU corporations access to sub-national procurement and the right to challenge local and provincial decisions which impact their access to investment. Rather than make procurement more ‘fair’ as some claim, this will draw out bids and bias decisions in favour of European multinational corporations.

The Council of Canadians is particularly concerned about the impact of CETA on public access to water as Europe is home to the largest water corporations in the world, which have their sights set on privatization of Canada’s public utilities.

“There is every chance a private water company would invoke new legal trade protections in cases where a city council decided to keep a water utility public on the grounds it would be more accountable, cheaper to run, or simply more democratic,” says Trew. “Even conservation strategies have come under attack in Europe by the large private water companies. If the Council of the Federation is truly concerned about protecting water, they shouldn’t be helping EU water companies dismantle protections in Canada.”

Prior to this week’s provincial-territorial meeting in Winnipeg, 32 organizations, including the Council of Canadians, sent a letter to all premiers demanding they seek informed consent from the public on what, if anything, to put on the table before proceeding any further with the EU negotiations. A copy of that letter in French and English is available at http://tradejustice.ca.