Following the recent uncertainty of the United Kingdom’s departure from the European Union, Canada and the United Kingdom, on November 21, 2020, concluded talks for the Canada-United Kingdom Trade Continuity Agreement – an interim agreement which will be in place as Canada and the United Kingdom work towards negotiating a comprehensive free trade agreement.
As the U.K. will no longer be covered by CETA beginning January 1, 2021, this transitional Trade Agreement will provide continued access to the benefits of CETA on a bilateral basis, including the elimination of tariffs on 98% of Canadian products exported to the United Kingdom.
The United Kingdom was Canada’s largest merchandise export market in Europe in 2019 with a two-way merchandise trade with the U.K. totaling $29 billion.
Canada and the United Kingdom, through a mutual commitment will be negotiating comprehensive free trade agreement tailored to the bilateral relationship and interests of the 2 parties.
The government will be consulting with Canadians and the provinces and territories, prior to their negotiations with the United Kingdom on a comprehensive FTA.
Additional information regarding the new transitional trade agreement is provided in the Global Affairs news release of November 21, 2020.