The French Sénat's rejection of CETA, the free trade agreement signed between the European Union and Canada in 2016, on Thursday, March 21, has officially left the Canadian government unmoved. When contacted, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau refused to provide an immediate reaction.
The country's ministry of foreign affairs provided only a short statement, saying businesses and workers in both countries will continue to benefit from the provisional application of CETA. This diplomatic reserve was no doubt intended to avoid complicating President Emmanuel Macron's task, now in a difficult position due to this vote which ultimately emperils the final ratification of the treaty.
For the time being, Canadian authorities and the country's media are content to treat this Sénat disavowal from the angle of the French electoral climate. They see nothing personal, so to speak, in the attacks on Canada by opponents of the text. Canadian-European trade is merely the collateral victim of French partisan debates, comprised of a motley political coalition ranging from the Communist party to the French right, and fueled by the French agricultural lobby.
'An insult to the truth'
But among those who had the opportunity to follow the Sénat debate in its entirety, some were nonetheless left "shocked." Such is the case of Richard Ouellet, a specialist in economic globalization issues at Laval University in Quebec City. "I've heard falsehoods, exaggerations, distortions and caricatures," he raged, "this massive rejection [by senators] is an insult to Canada and to the truth."
"The figures are dramatic, but it's France that has been the big winner from this treaty since its application in 2017," he explained. "Our cheese stalls are now French, wines are French, French cookies like BN [owned by Turkish food group Yildiz holding since 2014, but produced in France] have even made a meteoric breakthrough thanks to CETA!"
Above all, he refuted accusations of distorted health standards between Canadian and European livestock farms, which would endanger the health of French consumers. "Nothing that is banned in France or Europe, such as meat-and-bone meal or growth promoters for cattle, crosses the customs barrier, thanks to the rules set out in the agreement," he assured.
Back in February 2020, when she thought ratification of the CETA was imminent, Canada's ambassador to France Isabelle Hudon appeared before French senators to denounce "the fantasies" of those who were, in her view, "Canada bashing." The invasion of Canadian beef on French plates is "a myth," she said.
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