Canada heralds progress toward TPP deal

Trade ministers from the USA, Japan and 10 other Pacific Rim countries opened final-stretch negotiations on Wednesday trying to seal a deal on the world’s largest free-trade pact, the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

Canadian dairy, poultry and egg farmers are anxious the TPP threatens Canada’s supply management system – which regulates price, imports and production of turkeys, chickens, eggs and dairy.

On the campaign trail federal party leaders are expressing their support for Canada’s dairy industry as cows, farmers and dozens of tractors demonstrate on Parliament Hill.

Those thresholds would be below the two-decade old North American Free Trade Agreement rules which have been credited with driving the auto industry boom in Mexico.

With the election less than three weeks away, it’s not clear how much Canadians will learn about the deal, which has stirred up bitter opposition among stakeholders in the dairy, poultry and automotive industries.

Health advocates and generic drug-makers sounded that alarm over a leaked TPP draft that showed greater protection for pharmaceutical companies, a US demand. “South Korea, the Philippines, Thailand, and Taiwan have already indicated their interest in joining the TPP once it is concluded”, Brookings analyst Joshua P. Meltzer said. The 11 other countries involved in the negotiations account for a significant share of Canada’s agriculture export destinations worldwide.

The TPP is being negotiated between Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, New Zealand, Singapore, the United States and Vietnam.

He told 660 NEWS that cheaper access to the Japanese market is the real key to the deal for Canada.

Trade talks started in 2012, and are now happening in Atlanta.

It will also cement United States labour and environmental practices within the region’s trade relationships, creating a blueprint for future trade agreements with countries such as China.

“We have to stay at the table to defend and protect our interests and be prepared to move forward”.

Ministers are aiming over two days to bridge differences over a number of key issues, which stood in the way of a hoped-for agreement during top-level talks in Hawaii in July.

If trade ministers agree to final terms at the meeting, the deal would be the biggest such agreement since the 1980s, including 30 percent of global exports, and 25 percent of imports, according to a note published by the Brookings Institution on Sunday.

There was no sign of protesters at the Westin early Tuesday afternoon, but groups have been working to organize demonstrations in Woodruff Park downtown Thursday, when ministers are expected to announce the progress made on the talks.

Not quite. The old continental trade deal would keep existing, but important parts would be superseded by the new agreement. “Dairy farmers, poultry farmers, the feather industry can be assured this government has got their back”.

Most countries worry whether the window is closing due to political events in the United States and Canada.

Nonetheless, there are good reasons to withhold specifics, especially during the negotiation period or when lawyers comb through the text after a deal has been signed, he added.

Japan has pushed hard during talks in Atalanta for a deal on auto parts, a crucial issue for Japananese carmakers, led by Toyota Motor Corp, who depend on sales to the USA market and want flexibility in how and where they source parts.