STOWE, Vt. – On Sunday, Aug. 12, one day before the 42nd annual meeting of the New England Governers and Eastern Canadian Premieres, Vermont Gov. Phil Scott and Québec Premier Philippe Couillard signed a Joint Declaration aiming to strengthen their long-standing cooperative ties in a variety of sectors to foster economic growth and job creation.
This Joint Declaration builds upon the Cooperative Agreement between the governments of Québec and Vermont. The Joint Declaration affirms the two leaders’ commitment to deploy joint efforts in the areas of economic growth, specifically in the sectors of aerospace and advanced manufacturing; development of a skilled workforce; along with student mobility, innovation, and energy transition
The Joint Declaration also establishes promising new collaboration in the area of transportation electrification, all according to a press release from the governor’s office.
The Premier and Governor agreed to continue, and work together to enhance, collaborative efforts regarding climate change, while promoting sustainable economic development. Further, they’ll increase collaboration in efforts to protect shared waterways.
“The people of Québec and Vermont share strong cultural and economic ties. Regardless of which political party is in power, or who serves as leader, Québec and Vermont are bound by our deep connections and commitment to one another,” Scott said in the press release. “Premier Couillard and I are fortunate to be the current stewards of this centuries-old partnership and we have the honor of enhancing the collaborative work each government is doing to significantly strengthen the economy of both Québec and Vermont.”
Couillard added, “By signing this declaration, our Government wishes to accelerate the development of our cross-border economic relations with our neighbor and long-standing partner. We want to alleviate the negative effects of the uncertainty caused by the current economic context for Québec workers and entrepreneurs. Governor Scott and I are determined to do everything in our power to maintain open markets and jobs for our families and our workers. Any dislocation of our shared economic space would result in job losses on the both sides of the border. The job of the Québec Government is to insure our economic growth and this is inevitably accomplished by the diversification of our networks and expansion of our economic relations. We are doing all we can to remain competitive in a mutating world market.”
In 2017, bilateral exchanges between Québec and Vermont represented $2.2 billion (USD). Quebec is Vermont’s largest international trading partner; and Vermont is Québec’s second-largest economic partner in New England, 11th in the U.S., all according to the press release. In 2016, 354,700 Vermont tourists traveled to Québec, spending 54.8 million USD; and almost 1.5 million Québec tourists traveled to Vermont in 2016, spending 140.5 million USD.
Scott was the host of the 42nd Conference of New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers. He has made three missions to Québec in 19 months as governor, and participated in the Aeromart Montreal trade show last April and met with Québec business leaders.
The North American free trade zone is the largest economic region in the world representing 21 billion USD and an estimated 480 million consumers, according to the governor’s office.
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