SPEECHES

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NOTES FOR AN ADDRESS BY

THE HONOURABLE ART EGGLETON

MINISTER FOR INTERNATIONAL TRADE

ON THE OCCASION OF

THE CANADA-EU TRANSATLANTIC BUSINESS FORUM

TORONTO, Ontario

November 5, 1996

It's a real pleasure for me to be here to help launch the Canada-EU [European Union] Transatlantic Business Forum.

I want to thank the Conference Board of Canada and the Delegation of the European Commission in Canada for sponsoring this important event.

This is not the time for long speeches, but I guess at least I am guaranteed a standing ovation.

When I heard about this ten-day, four-city forum, I thought it sounded more like a Rock and Roll tour!

I just hope that you can keep this forum on the straight and narrow when you take it on the road!

I think this is a great initiative and I look forward to learning the results of your workshops.

I particularly admire the practical approach chosen for these workshops. This is no pie-in-the-sky exercise. It's a down-to-earth approach to the problems that exist and that must be addressed. Our relationship with the European Union is mature enough to profit from such a frank assessment.

For our part, Canada is determined to strengthen the ties that bind us to the European Union. And while it's true that we've expanded our trading relations with third parties, this in no way diminishes our commitment to the transatlantic relationship, which has served both sides so well in the past and which still holds such promise for the future.

The ties between Europe and Canada are both ancient and deep. Five hundred years ago, the first Europeans set foot on what is now Canadian soil and trade between our two regions began.

Since that time, Europeans have helped settle our land, establish our country, enrich our culture and build our economy. European immigration to Canada has left a legacy of common family, cultural and linguistic bonds that is unparalleled between any two regions in the world.

Nowhere else can one area look to another and see so much of itself reflected back.

These are things not easily forgotten or set aside.

But our connection to one another is not just rooted in the past, we are also committed to a common future -- a future of open markets and freer trade.

Of course, expanding trade is not a matter of choice for Canadians: with a relatively small population, we simply must find markets beyond our borders. This is a challenge that Canadians are taking on with tenacity and success.

Exports have been growing at an unprecedented rate and now represent nearly 37 per cent of our GDP [gross domestic product], compared to only 24 per cent just five years ago.

One in three jobs in Canada now depends on exports. One in three!

Last year, Canadians produced a record trade surplus of $28 billion, smashing the previous record of about $20 billion set in 1984.

Significantly, much of this growth is taking place in value-added sectors, which means that we are no longer just exporting raw materials for others to refine and then sell back to us at increased prices. This is good news for the long-term economic prospects of Canadians.

So our trade is growing, our exports are diversifying and our markets are expanding. Canadians are taking on the world -- and winning.

But if we are to continue along this path to prosperity, we must continually raise our sights, increase our expectations and break through into new markets.

When Canadian companies think about exporting, most think first of our nearest and largest export market -- the United States. This is only natural, given the proximity and familiarity of that market.

But no company and no country can afford to be a one-trick pony. We need to reach out beyond North America, to the vast, untapped markets of the world. And no market holds greater potential for explosive growth than the European Union. For Canadian companies, the opportunities are particularly great: our companies have much of the specialized R & D [research and development] expertise that European firms and research organizations are seeking.

So the need is there and the opportunity is there -- and the time is now. History teaches us that opportunities like this don't come along very often and that when they do, they don't last very long. The time has come to put timidity aside and to act boldly.

Europe, "the old world," is new again. The 15 states of the European Union constitute the world's largest market, accounting for about 37 per cent of all the world's trade. And it is the world's largest importer of goods.

With the removal of internal barriers to the free flow of goods, services, capital and people, the EU has become a true economic superpower -- one whose GDP now surpasses that of the United States.

Here is a trade area made up of developed countries, boasting well trained workforces and a market of over 370 million consumers. The economies are growing, inflation is holding at around 3 per cent and GDP is rising steadily. Quite simply, the EU has evolved into one of the most competitive markets in the world, significantly influencing global trade and investment patterns.

These are conditions that should enthuse any exporter and encourage any company not already exporting to get on board -- fast!

Just to give you some idea of the size of this market, one province (Westphalia) in one country (Germany) has a GDP greater than that of South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and Hong Kong combined.

It's also important to remind Canadian entrepreneurs that it's becoming easier and easier to do business in Europe. Last December, agreement was reached on a number of trade issues, many of them agricultural matters.

And at the Halifax Summit in 1995, we signed the Science and Technology Agreement, which allows Canadian companies, in co-operation with European companies, to participate in research and development projects funded by the EU.

We are also working hard on an agreement that would allow for the mutual recognition of standards in a wide variety of sectors. This will mean that manufacturers will face even less time and less expense in getting their products into the European market.

So old impediments are falling away and an immense, rich and profitable market is opening up.

Sure, some irritants exist -- and I am hopeful that this Forum will provide us with concrete suggestions as to how best to deal with them -- but the reality is that the vast majority of our trade with the European Union occurs trouble-free.

The Canadian-EU relationship is stronger and more diversified than ever. Economic and political structures have been put in place to guide and reinforce that relationship.

But while governments can create the mechanisms for trade and investment, in the end it is individual entrepreneurs -- making the decisions and taking the risks and realizing the profits -- that make those mechanisms work.

You can be sure that the Canadian government will do all it can to forge new alliances and open new markets. But it all begins, in a very real sense, with you.

One of the stated objectives of this forum is "to open up new avenues for doing business across the Atlantic, whether directly or in conjunction with other partners."

In that effort and toward that goal, you have my best wishes and full support.

Thank you.