Today in the Senate, Senator Ringuette again questioned the Leader of the government in the Senate on the Softwood Lumber Agreement and urged Senator LeBreton to table, in the Senate, the proposed deal and refer it to the Senate’s Standing Committee on Banking, Trade and Commerce so it can be reviewed.
This weekend, International Trade Minister David Emerson confirmed in an interview that under the terms of the new Softwood Lumber Agreement that provincial governments will have to go through Washington before making any changes to their forest policy.
“How can Harper’s Conservative government give up our sovereignty over the management of our Natural Resources?” asked Senator Ringuette. “The interview also indicated that the Conservative government wants a June 15 signing date on the Softwood Lumber Agreement. The Leader of the government in the Senate said last week that this issue was behind us, when in reality it is still in front of us.”
Senator Ringuette asked for a second time that the Leader of the government in the Senate tables the potential Softwood Lumber Agreement and refers it, for a full study, to the Standing Committee of banking, trade and commerce. Senator Ringuette is adamant that by tabling the document they will put a dent in their culture of secrecy
“I can’t stress enough that the Softwood Lumber issue put a lot of Canadian jobs at risk and many Canadian businesses in survival mode. They need to table this deal, because we want that document opened and reviewed. Canadians expect nothing more than openness from its government” said Senator Ringuette.