Lhe treaties grant the European Commission exclusive competence to negotiate free trade agreements, opening a period of provisional application before their ratification by member states. However, she does not act alone. For each agreement, the Commission receives, from the Member States, precise negotiating instructions and red lines not to be crossed.
The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement between the European Union (EU) and Canada (CETA) has been applied provisionally for almost seven years. For the agreement to be definitively ratified, the approval of the 27 member states is required. Today, 17 of them have fully ratified CETA at national level (Austria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Romania). , Slovakia and Sweden) and 10 have not yet ratified it (Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, France, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Poland and Slovenia).
In 2019, the National Assembly gave the green light thanks to the deputies of the presidential majority, but the Senate refused its ratification at the end of March, as part of a completely surprising alliance between the Greens, the communists, La France insoumise, the socialists, The Republicans and the National Rally. Again, all except the presidential majority.
Detractors, from all sides, maintain that the parliamentarians of the presidential majority are liberals in favor of free trade even if it endangers the security and sovereignty of France. However, it is these same Renaissance deputies who blocked Mercosur in the European Parliament, as President Macron did within the Council!
Three times more fertilizer
The reality is often more complex than a simple slogan. Even though it may not be popular or trendy, we strongly argue that every free trade agreement is different and you should take the time to read and study it! We are fortunate to have a period of provisional application of CETA, which provides us with all the data necessary to base our vote on facts and figures and not on ideology and preconceptions. Let’s look at the numbers.
According to our calculations based on figures communicated by the Directorate General for Trade of the European Commission, French exports of services to Canada have increased by 85%. Canadian investments in France increased by 237%, from 290 million euros in 2016 to 977 million euros in 2022. Exports of leather products increased by 79% between 2016 and 2022, by 53% for perfumes and cosmetics, and 126% for clothing. The aerospace and pharmaceutical sectors saw their exports to Canada grow by 6% and 27% respectively.
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