PEI chapter activist and national vice-chairperson Leo Broderick.
The Council of Canadians Prince Edward Island chapter is calling on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to be open and transparent through the entirety of the renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with US President Donald Trump.
In a letter to the editor published in The Guardian today, PEI chapter activist Leo Broderick writes, “As Prime Minister Trudeau heads to Washington for closed-door meetings Monday with U.S. President Donald Trump, the Council of Canadians and thousands of its supporters are urging the Prime Minister not to pursue a backroom deal on NAFTA. We want the process to be fair and transparent and include full consultation with the public, civil society and Indigenous peoples.”
His letter highlights, “The Council of Canadians is also calling on Prime Minister Trudeau to ensure that any NAFTA renegotiations include the following:
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Eliminate Chapter 11, the investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) process that allows foreign corporations to sue governments over future profits. -
Protect water from export by removing all references to water. -
Eliminate NAFTA’s energy proportionality rule, which forces a proportion of Canadian energy to be exported to the U.S., locking Canada into continued tar sands production. -
Prioritize good jobs, democracy and the environment. -
Include full public consultations.”
Broderick notes, “Maude Barlow, national chairperson of the Council of Canadians says, ‘For years, we have seen the ravages of NAFTA. It’s time to put an end to the Chapter 11 corporate lawsuits that have cost Canada millions of dollars, eroded our environmental and public policy, hollowed out manufacturing towns and put hundreds of thousands of people out of work, and created greater inequality in Canada, the U.S. and Mexico.'”
To send your message to Trudeau highlighting these concerns, please go to our online action alert NAFTA renegotiations cannot be another backroom deal.
Following Trudeau’s meeting with Trump on February 13, formal NAFTA negotiations with the US and Mexico could begin as soon as early-May. A ‘Three Amigos’ North American Leaders Summit is also expected to take place in the coming months.
