[Editor's Note: Update October 29: The complete text of the proposed Canada-China Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (FIPA) is available at: http://www.international.gc.ca/trade-agreements-accords-commerciaux/agr-acc/fipa-apie/china-text-chine.aspx?lang=en&view=d. The following was originally posted October 26:]

Demand more transparency and more democracy on the Canada-China trade deal

There Is No Planet B

There Is No Planet B, original image courtesy: Chris Yakimov via Flickr.

You might be surprised to learn that on Oct 31, the federal government plans to quietly approve the “Canada-China Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement.” This deal will bind Canadians for 31 years — a full generation.

There is no plan for debate in the House of Commons or examination by a legislative committee or provincial governments.

Why do you need know about this?

  • The agreement would allow China to sue Canada, outside of Canada and behind closed doors, if its investment interests were hindered. For example, if the B.C. government decided to stop the Northern Gateway pipeline over concerns about environmental impact, Canadians could be on the hook for millions, or billions in damages.
  • The deal requires Canada to give Chinese companies “the right to full protection and security from public opposition.” Should we put trade agreements before the protection of air, water, soil and biodiverse ecosystems that sustain us all?
  • That the deal is being concluded with no public input, provincial consultation or parliamentary debate makes it part of a disturbing trend to ignore democratic processes and rush policy and legislative changes that could significantly affect the protection of our natural environment, as we have seen with the government’s two omnibus budget bills.

Raise your voice for more transparency and more democracy.

Tell the Prime Minister that Canadians want to examine, discuss and debate this important trade deal before it’s too late.

The David Suzuki Foundation

[Editor's Note: The post this email refers to can be found on the David Suzuki Foundation's website at: http://action2.davidsuzuki.org/undemocratic-trade-deal.]

 

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