ABSTRACT
During the 1980s, free trade with the USA emerged from the fringes of Canadian political debate to become a reality for Canada. Brian Mulroney opposed free trade in his successful campaign for the Conservative Party's leadership in 1983. As Prime Minister, he signed the Canada–US Free Trade Agreement (CUSFTA) in 1988. In chapter 5, Stephen McBride analysed the broad socioeconomic and ideological forces that pushed Canada toward continental integration. This chapter examines the more immediate Canadian origins of CUSFTA and the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), and assesses the contents, effects and implications of these agreements.
