Canada and Britain agreed a new trade deal recently, allowing the two countries to herald a commercial victory in the face of the economic devastation induced by the COVID-19 pandemic.
While announcing the deal during a video news conference with the Prime Minister of Britain, Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau said: “This is a good moment.”
In the same vein, Boris Johnson said: “Free trade is an important part of the way we’re going to bounce back from COVID. And using that, this is a moment in which to tackle climate change, but also to create hundreds of thousands of jobs in green technologies.”
The two leaders talked on a shared video screen as they were preparing to hook up with their fellow G20 leaders at the beginning of their two-day virtual video summit hosted by Saudi Arabia.
Trudeau said the new trade deal passed a strong message about the importance of global trade.
He said: “This continued sign of our collaboration, co-operation, and deep, deep friendship and partnership is really important not just for people in our two countries, but people around the world as well.”
Canada’s International Trade Minister, Mary Ng, said legislation would soon be introduced in Parliament so the deal could be ratified. Ng remarked that Canada did not offer Britain any extra market access to British cheese, thereby preserving the status quo of the supply management system of the country.
Canada and Britain have worked under an 11-month transition phase since Britain exited the EU at the end of January. Negotiators of Canada and Britain have been holding meetings since summer to work out the deal.
