Released on August 6, 2014
The Saskatchewan government welcomes the latest milestone reached by the federal government on the path to a free trade deal between Canada and the European Union (EU).
The federal government announced yesterday that negotiations had concluded with the EU and that the complete text had been finalized of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA). Agreement in principle on CETA was announced in October of last year.
“This is an important step forward in opening up new markets in Europe for our province’s businesses and exporters,” Minister responsible for Trade Jeremy Harrison said. “Saskatchewan will be reviewing the final text, but overall we’re very supportive of the federal government’s commitment to getting this trade deal done and we applaud the efforts of Prime Minister Harper and International Trade Minister Ed Fast.”
Next steps on the agreement involve a final legal review and translation, as well as ratification by the Canadian and European Parliaments and the European Council.
Once in place, CETA will provide Saskatchewan’s agricultural producers in areas like beef, bison and grain with significant new access to the EU. National estimates of increased activity for the Canadian agricultural sector as a whole through CETA total $1.3 billion.
Saskatchewan also stands to gain through the easing of Canadian restrictions on EU investment, including in the uranium mining sector. Harrison noted that such changes under the agreement will make Saskatchewan much more attractive for EU investment in uranium mining projects.
“We estimate that the easing of investment restrictions through CETA could result in as much as $2.5 billion in investment in Saskatchewan’s uranium mining over the next 15 years,” Harrison said. “More importantly, we could see more than 1,200 jobs created over that period – jobs and economic opportunities that will benefit the people and communities of northern Saskatchewan.”
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For more information, contact:
Bob Ellis
Intergovernmental Affairs
Regina
Phone: 306-787-2709
Email: robert.ellis@gov.sk.ca