Transcript Canadian Trade Policies The Domestic Political and

Geoffrey Hale
Political Science 3170
University of Lethbridge
October 7, 2010
Outline
 Consultation, citizen engagement and public opinion
 Complex sovereignty, federalism and trade
Trade Policies and
Consultation Processes
 Objective – greater legitimacy through
 Consultation with key stakeholders and general public
 Relative transparency through public availability of
information, multi-stage consultation processes, citizen
engagement, and independent appeals processes following
implementation.
Citizen engagement vs. consultation
Citizen Engagement
Consultation
 Readily accessible information
 Oriented towards formal
 Oriented towards “average

citizen” – not interest / activist
groups
 Discussion of broad policy goals
(problem identification /
feedback) – but within broader
context of government policies
 Frustrating for those at odds
with basic policy thrusts



stakeholders
Separate political (big picture) /
bureaucratic (technical) processes
Usually oriented towards
technical details  expertise
required (requires substantial
investment)
Usually function within context of
broader policy goals, if with
potential for separate sector
strategies  often involve
different federal departments
Potential for “process exhaustion”
Public opinion and trade policies
 Input legitimacy (based on prior consultation on details) vs.
Output legitimacy (based on results or outcomes)
 Publics often divided  supporters / opponents / “broad center”
 General public typically less interested in technical details than
sense that governments are “listening”, addressing broader public
concerns
 Are broad policy outlines within the “permissive consensus”


Promoting visible economic well-being while maintaining role of
domestic governments accountable to their citizens
Appearance of consultation, responsiveness
 Key sectoral debates may involve more intensive debate with
narrower groups of stakeholders (e.g. agricultural sub-sectors,
intellectual property)
Complex sovereignty and Canadian trade
policies (Grande / Pauly  Skogstad)
 Sovereignty
 External – product of mutual recognition / accommodation?
among states
 Internal – recognizes partial autonomy of state from society
 but also division of sovereignty among different
dimensions of the state (e.g. federal / provincial / courts)
 The two dimensions of sovereignty function both
independently and interdependently  GEH: two-level
game?
 Some observers also note a partial devolution of sovereignty
to societal actors (e.g. sectoral policies / dependence on
interest group, public support cultivated through
consultations)
The Political Economy of Canadian Trade
Policies – Structural and Constitutional Factors
 Key export-oriented industrial sectors regionally segmented (Kukucha)
 Alta / Sask – oil and gas * Ontario – automotive sector
 Quebec (primary) – aerospace / proprietary pharmaceuticals / aluminum
 BC / Ontario / Quebec – lumber * Ontario / BC - minerals
 Ontario (primary) – IT sector
 Division of constitutional authority (Labour Conventions, 1937)
 Potential for provinces “opting in” // federal reluctance to enforce
treaty provisions in historical areas of provincial jurisdiction
 Ottawa has option to secure prior provincial consent on issues of
primary or exclusive provincial jurisdiction
 Shift of major issues in int’l trade negotiations to non-tariff
measures frequently in provincial jurisdiction
The Political Economy of Canadian Trade
Policies – Structural and Constitutional Factors
 Division of constitutional authority (Labour Conventions, 1937)
 Potential for provinces “opting in” // federal reluctance to enforce
treaty provisions in historical areas of provincial jurisdiction
 Ottawa has option to secure prior provincial consent on issues of
primary or exclusive provincial jurisdiction
 Shift of major issues in int’l trade negotiations to non-tariff
measures frequently in provincial jurisdiction
Formal consultative structures with
provinces (trade policy)
 Evolution since 1970s
 FTA (1980s)- “Continuing Committee on Trade Negotiations”

Provincial consent informal rather than formal
 C-Trade (1990s - )
 Quarterly meetings with pre-meeting circulation, approval of
agendas
 Potential for joint-decision trap (requirements for unanimity)
 BUT – each prov’s participation usually focused on priority sectors
 Allows for consensus-building on sector-specific trade disputes, esp.
if focused on activities in / of one province
 Potential for Chapter 11 cases arising from provincial actions where
federal government is defendant (e.g. AbitibiBowater, 2009-10)
Interaction of federal-provincial, sectoral
consultation processes
 Variations by sector
 e.g. Provinces key actors in softwood lumber disputes due to
regulatory authority, regionally fragmented industry
 e.g. Greater federal role in agricultural trade negotiations due
to existence of pan-Canadian institutions for brokering subsectoral interests