Canada does not need to join the EU to increase trade and partnerships. More trade agreements and joint projects. The EU is a complicated political structure and joining it is unnecessarily complicateted.
Absolutely correct. There are plenty of mutually beneficial arrangements short of full membership. And an EU membership application process typically takes decades. We need solutions now.
I don’t think anyone in this picture seriously expects Canada to officially join the EU. The US would never allow such an interference with its manifest destiny. But we can make a close partnership even closer.
They don’t need to join it as a full member to have trade and economic benefits. Simple (!) alignment with standards and regulations will allow free access to the market and free movement of people.
Is there any reason to not join the EU if we want to align standards, regulations, and allow free movement?
The only thing I can think of that would be a hard change would be our dollar. We could possibly negotiate to keep that though - I don’t know if the EU is still making exceptions like that or if that was just at the beginning.
The EU and US standards are very different and products for one can’t necessarily be shipped to the other and vice versa. Examples for food include massive differences for colourings, preservatives and the like. Europe will not accept chicken washed in chlorinated water or bright froot loops. Health traffic lights are also going to be different.
While it’s possible to have 2 production lines, 1 for each economic zone, that’s expensive for producers and shippers.
Someone please correct me if I’m wrong, but I’m pretty sure that Canada’s food standards with regards to dyes and preservatives are already far closer to the EU standard than the American.
Unpopular take maybe…
Canada does not need to join the EU to increase trade and partnerships. More trade agreements and joint projects. The EU is a complicated political structure and joining it is unnecessarily complicateted.
Absolutely correct. There are plenty of mutually beneficial arrangements short of full membership. And an EU membership application process typically takes decades. We need solutions now.
I don’t think anyone in this picture seriously expects Canada to officially join the EU. The US would never allow such an interference with its manifest destiny. But we can make a close partnership even closer.
Not in the picture, but other folks in this posts comments are taking this possibility too seriously
They don’t need to join it as a full member to have trade and economic benefits. Simple (!) alignment with standards and regulations will allow free access to the market and free movement of people.
Is there any reason to not join the EU if we want to align standards, regulations, and allow free movement?
The only thing I can think of that would be a hard change would be our dollar. We could possibly negotiate to keep that though - I don’t know if the EU is still making exceptions like that or if that was just at the beginning.
The EU and US standards are very different and products for one can’t necessarily be shipped to the other and vice versa. Examples for food include massive differences for colourings, preservatives and the like. Europe will not accept chicken washed in chlorinated water or bright froot loops. Health traffic lights are also going to be different.
While it’s possible to have 2 production lines, 1 for each economic zone, that’s expensive for producers and shippers.
Someone please correct me if I’m wrong, but I’m pretty sure that Canada’s food standards with regards to dyes and preservatives are already far closer to the EU standard than the American.