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Prime Minister Mark Carney is touting increased integration with Europe at a time when Canada’s relationship with the United States is in tatters. His statements have sparked concern in Canada about an imminent joining with the European Union.
That’s unlikely, even as a recent poll by European research firm YouGov shows considerable support among Europeans for welcoming Canada into the fold. A membership in the EU is a years-long, perhaps decades-long, process.
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Still, as a thought process only, let’s look at what that would mean.
The first concern many Canadians might have is ceding control to a parliament in Strasbourg, France. That’s understandable, however, it might be useful to point out EU elections are by proportional representation, and thus are arguably more democratic than ours. As well, with almost 42 million people, Canada would send more members than 23 of the existing 27 member nations. We’d have as many or more members than Poland’s current 53.
Only Spain, Italy, France and Germany would have larger contingents in the European Parliament than Canada. Interestingly, in that YouGov poll, 55 per cent of Germans were in favour of Canada joining.
The European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, is home to 720 MEPs following the June 2024 elections. (Albert Stumm photo)
The control ceded isn’t absolute, either: member nations retain their sovereignty, their parliaments and their constitutions. The European Court of Justice would supersede the Supreme Court of Canada, which could be a deal-breaker.
It is worth asking whether Canada already has too much red tape and whether it could stand adding another layer.
Trade deals — the area of economics that has sparked this conversation — are negotiated by the bloc as a whole. Which means a deal with the U.S. would be between a bloc of 491 million people (when you add Canada) and a country of 341 million people.
Canada would, if not immediately, adopt the euro and surrender monetary policy to the European Central Bank.
An EU membership would revolutionize Canada’s tourism industry, both by increasing the number of visits and by increasing competition among airlines. It would mean border-free travel between member states.
None of this should be seen as an argument in favour. Certainly, there are some major concerns and major hurdles, not the least of which is this is a decision that should be put to a federal election. Then there are years of adjustments to Canadian laws to align with European Union laws and finally, a vote by the EU on acceptance.
If you think Donald Trump is a temporary blip in a 159-year relationship, it probably doesn’t make sense to go down a road that won’t end until he’s long dead. It was an interesting idea to explore, however.
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