The leader of the Bloc Quebecois has introduced another private member's bill that aims to prevent any concessions on supply management in future trade negotiations.
Bill C-202 is identical to Bill C-282, which was approved by the House of Commons in 2023, but died at the report stage in the Senate when Parliament was dissolved for the federal election this spring. It's also the same as Bill C-216, which was introduced by a Bloc MP in 2020 and died on the Order Paper with the election in 2021.
Brought forward by Yves-François Blanchet on Thursday, C-202 was the second private member's bill to be introduced in the new session of Parliament that started this week.
Bill C-202 would amend the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Act to prevent the trade minister from agreeing to any trade deal that would a) increase the tariff rate quota for dairy products, poultry, or eggs and b) reduce the tariff on imports of supply managed goods above the tariff rate quota.
Speaking to media, Blanchet said he would like to see MPs send the bill back to the Senate before summer break, and have it become law before the start of new trade negotiations, with discussions around the future of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico trade deal set to ramp up in the coming months.
More to come.
