Pauline Marois is the leader of the Quebec's separatist party, Parti Québécois, and the Premier of Quebec.  Before Christmas, from December 13th to the 17th, she travelled to Paris,  Brussels, and Monaco, where she spoke at the 2013 World Policy Conference.

Today's featured quote is something Premier Marois said in Brussels, after her meeting there with Michel Barnier, the EU Commissioner for Internal Market and Services.  The accord she was talking about was the newly minted Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement between Canada and the European Union or CETA. According to The Globe and Mail's Michel Dolbec, Ms. Marois "sees advantages in the free-trade deal but the cheese issue had 'caused some problems.'"  Briefly, Quebec's cheese producers expect to lose market share to EU competitors and are looking for up-front compensation.  And they have some leverage.
 
Technically, treaties in Canada - including free trade agreements like CETA - are a federal responsibility.  In some respects, however, this one is a little different.  The provinces will need to agree to those commitments within CETA that fall within their jurisdiction - provincial procurement, for example.  Still the CETA agreement itself is between the Government of Canada (that is the federal government) and the EU and its Member States. 

Canada and the EU began their CETA negotiations in October 2009.  On October 18, 2013, in Brussels, Prime Minister Harper and EU Commission President José Manuel Barroso signed an Agreement-in-Principle, and on October 29, Prime Minister Harper tabled a "Technical Summary of Final Negotiated Outcomes" of that agreement in Parliament.  This is useful, but it leaves a lot out, perhaps because there is still a lot to be negotiated. 

After the signing in Brussels and before the submission of the summary to Parliament, the Canadian Government dispatched a team of ministers to Alberta to talk about the deal.  Our guess is they were speaking to receptive audiences, given the enthusiasm which Alberta's premier, Alison Redford, had earlier expressed for CETA.  She too has concerns about cheese, but she is focused more on a bigger picture.

 The EU is the world's largest importer of agricultural products, and Premier Redford's eyes are on the export opportunities CETA will open up for beef and pork and other commodities.  Speaking in Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta, in early October, she said:

Parts of that quote are unclear to us.  We are not sure what she meant by "six countries."  But what is clear is this: the cheese issues notwithstanding, Canadian agriculture sees tremendous potential in the FTA with Europe.  As for Premier Marois in Quebec, doubtless she will drive a hard bargain with Ottawa, but it is hard to see Quebec - especially a Québécois Quebec with dreams of independence - saying "Non!" to a trade deal with Europe.

That said, it is worth repeating that the deal isn't really done yet.  There will be  time for all of us to consider what is in it - or will be in it. And what it means -- for Canada, for Europe, and for third countries like the United States, which is now engaged in its own FTA negotiations with the EU.

Finally, with respect CETA's implementation in Canada and the EU, we suspect there is more to say on that score.  And there should be time for that too.