Hon. Andrew Cardozo: Colleagues, I rise today to speak in favour of Bill C-282, An Act to amend the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Act (supply management), and to speak against the report of the Foreign Affairs and International Trade Committee and the amendment they have put forward.

Our dairy, poultry and egg industries have asked us to pass this bill in its original, unamended form. With the amendment proposed by the committee in place, this bill will not apply to any trade deals currently in force and any renegotiations or deals in the course of being negotiated. It would make the bill ineffective.

I wish to take this time to share a few views of Canadians who support this bill.

Listen to Steve Verheul, our chief trade negotiator from 2017-21 who said:

I really see this more as a political signal of support to the dairy sector and to supply management more broadly. . . .

I don’t expect this to have a huge impact on negotiations going forward.

The Canadian Federation of Agriculture said:

In practice, Bill C-282 elevates the decision-making threshold to trade away Canadian food security by requiring an explicit decision from Parliament to do so. Were a future government to seek such a concession from Parliament, it is worth noting that such a concession, while adding an additional complexity to the process, could carry even greater weight in the negotiations.

The Fédération des producteurs d’œufs du Québec said:

In the case of eggs, the past 50 years of supply management have proven that there has been no shortage of eggs in Canada. They are of superior quality, since the various programs that producers must comply with ensure that Canadians receive a safe product that is traceable from farm to retailer, high in nutritional content, respects animal welfare and has a low environmental footprint.

As egg farmers in other provinces have explained to us in their brief to the committee:

Trade agreements are an important part of helping Canada’s agricultural sector achieve its full potential. However, pursuing these ambitious targets must not be at the expense of the stability of our food supply and rural communities . . . . Bill C-282 will prevent erosion of Canadian egg, poultry and dairy production and ensure we continue to produce staple foods within our borders.

In a brief submitted by Maurice Doyon, Professor of Agriculture at Laval; Bruce Muirhead, Professor of History at Waterloo; and Jodey Nurse, lecturer at the McGill Institute for the Study of Canada, these experts on supply management said:

International trade agreements have already worked to disrupt Canada’s dairy, eggs, and poultry industries, and any further negotiations could lead to the complete restructuring of these sectors and the communities that they serve. Supply management’s ability to provide stability in the countryside should not be undervalued. The Canadian model of supply management has protected supply-managed farmers from the worst excesses of the so-called free market while also providing consumers with a competitively priced and nutritious product.

Colleagues, this bill is about sending a signal to our trade partners. The bar for concessions in this area is high — not impossible, but high. It is high because this is a system that works well for us already.

This bill can only be said to weaken our hand if the objective is actually to give away supply-managed quota. There may be times when we need to do that as part of the overall deal, but it shouldn’t be our objective. The amendment as proposed takes away this benefit.

Colleagues, I encourage you to vote against the amendment and the committee’s report on Bill C-282 and, in so doing, vote in favour of protecting our agricultural industries, jobs and food supply.

Thank you.