Summary Notes: Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) Statement on The Transpacific Partnership to Canada’s Committee on International Trade

The Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) submitted a statement to Canada’s Committee on International Trade recommending against the ratification of the Transpacific Partnership (TPP) due to concerns that trade provisions could override environmental health standards and restrict access to affordable medicines.

• CAPE argues that the Transpacific Partnership (TPP) poses risks to public health and the environment, specifically noting that "Technical Barrier to Trade" provisions might prioritize trade over environmental health standards. They express concern that the determination of "legitimate" public welfare objectives would be decided by a tribunal of three investment lawyers lacking public health training.
• The TPP is expected to create barriers to generic competition through the extension of pharmaceutical patents, which CAPE states will increase costs for Canadians and limit global access to affordable medications.
• To address the health emergency caused by climate change, CAPE asserts that at least 80% of economic fossil fuel reserves must remain in the ground, alongside a full-scale low-carbon transition and a focus on pharmaceutical, food, and water security.

APA

Howard, C. (2016). Summary Notes: Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) Statement on The Transpacific Partnership to Canada’s Committee on International Trade. Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Executive-Summary-CAPE-Presentation-on-TPP.pdf

Chicago

Howard, Courtney. Summary Notes: Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) Statement on The Transpacific Partnership to Canada’s Committee on International Trade. Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, 2016. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Executive-Summary-CAPE-Presentation-on-TPP.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Howard |first1=Courtney |title=Summary Notes: Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) Statement on The Transpacific Partnership to Canada’s Committee on International Trade |publisher=Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment |date=22 September 2016 |url=https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Executive-Summary-CAPE-Presentation-on-TPP.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{howard2016summary, author = {Howard, Courtney}, title = {{Summary Notes: Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) Statement on The Transpacific Partnership to Canada’s Committee on International Trade}}, publisher = {Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}, year = {2016}, month = sep, url = {https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Executive-Summary-CAPE-Presentation-on-TPP.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }