Brussels, 29/04/2014 (Agence Europe) - The continuing disagreements on several thorny issues in the trade treaty, which was sealed with an agreement in principle between the European Commission and the Canadian government in autumn 2013, could delay its implementation until the end of 2015 or start of 2016.
Six months after the formal ceremony in Brussels on 18 October 2013 (see EUROPE 10946) with European Commission President José Manuel Barroso and Canada's Prime Minister Stephen Harper celebrating an agreement in principle on the key parts, the global economic and trade agreement between the EU and Canada, the CETA, is slow to emerge. Hailed as the first step towards implementing a transatlantic free market, this treaty - which is supposed to increase bilateral trade by 23%, or nearly €26 billion, including a gain of €12 billion per year of GDP for the EU - has still not been finalised, as the EU and Canada still need to come to an agreement on certain technical and legal points.
“There are still outstanding issues, especially in the management of unused quotas. And I will not sign the text until we have agreed on each comma”, said European Commissioner for Trade Karel De Gucht in April, quoted by the weekly publication l'Express on 18 April. The Canadian daily Toronto Star confirmed on 24 April that the negotiators are still working on the rules on import quotas for beef and pork, and on a “small number” of “important outstanding issues”. Among these are arrangements on the provision of services by businesses, investment rules and guidelines for determining, for example, whether Canadian-exported cars with a mix of Canadian and US parts are eligible for tariff reductions under the CETA.
Once a definitive agreement is sealed on the detailed content of the CETA, the free-trade treaty will have to be signed, then ratified by the EU and Canada. On the European side, at least 18 months will be needed before the European Parliament ratifies the text - a time period needed for legal control of the CETA's compatibility with Community legislation, then its translation into the 24 languages of the EU. (EH)