Informal Heads of Delegation Meeting – November 30, 2022

Canada's statement

I’d like to begin with a call to action on how we work. I’ve been here for more than three months. In that time, I’ve witnessed several successes, but I’ve also participated in many unnecessarily long meetings that were wasteful of delegates’ time. Responsibility for keeping meetings efficient rests with us as delegates. I would like to support the Chair’s call for focused and concise statements. Further to this, I take the opportunity to underscore and agree with the DG and Chair. Canada is disappointed and frustrated with the lack of progress on the appointment of chairs for agriculture and fisheries subsidies. This is a regrettable situation. If we are to be stewards for international trade, we must be practical and flexible.

On reform of the WTO: Canada looks forward to practical work in the committees and councils. Canada has invited Ottawa Group ministers to meetings next month and in January on how to help ensure that reforms happen and are useful for Members at all levels of development.

On dispute settlement: We have a shared goal of a fully functioning system by 2024. Achieving this will require that we remain open to new ideas while focusing on what is truly needed to meet our needs.

On the e-commerce moratorium: Canada will continue to contribute to the dedicated discussions on the work program. Canada has engaged in all discussions on the moratorium and has explained its position many times: the scope of the moratorium is that no customs duty shall be applied to either the content of the transmission, or the transmission itself, and we support a permanent prohibition.

On the Trade and Environmental Sustainability Structured Discussions: Discussions have advanced in 2022 on a range of trade-related environment issues and co-sponsors plan to engage in more targeted and in-depth discussions across the four working groups in 2023.

Let me now turn to ongoing negotiations.

On e-commerce: We support the efforts of the co-facilitators to intensify negotiations by focusing on proposals that have broader support. We are looking for an ambitious streamlined consolidated text by the end of the year.

On investment facilitation for development: Progress on negotiations in this JSI is important to help facilitate investment in many developing Members. We are prepared to engage substantively to conclude negotiations as soon as possible.

On agriculture, we agree with you. Canada is committed to engaging constructively towards progress, concrete progress. We call on all Members to work with us in this regard, through any and all configurations towards our common goal.

On fisheries subsidies: Canada is committed to advancing work towards concrete outcomes. We echo the DG’s frustration and disappointment with the lack of progress on what is a procedural issue.

Thank you.