Trudeau signals phasing out forestry

RENFREW COUNTY (Pembroke) — Cheryl Gallant, M.P. for Renfrew-Nipissing-Pembroke, used the Parliamentary debate on Bill C-4, the Canada-US-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA), to bring attention to the continued failure of the Trudeau Liberals to resolve the softwood lumber dispute.

“Many high-quality, well-paying jobs in the forestry sector are still at risk due to the federal government’s lack of action on this important sector of the Canadian economy,” noted Gallant.

The Prime Minister promised 400 thousand Canadian forestry workers a framework agreement on softwood lumber exports with the old Obama administration by mid-June 2016. The government’s failure to meet that deadline, and its subsequent failure to negotiate a final agreement before the expiry of the last trade agreement on October 12, 2016, allowed forestry workers’ jobs to become a political football to be kicked around by the new U.S. administration.

“The absence of a softwood lumber agreement coupled with Trudeau’s refusal to include it in CUSMA signals his intention to phase out the forestry industry, just like his plan to phase out the oil sands,” stated Gallant.

Under the previous Conservative government, a softwood lumber agreement was negotiated by the end of April 2006, within three months of coming into office, to solve the last softwood lumber dispute.

“The softwood lumber industry in my riding is characterized by small operations, many family owned, and by the people who depend on jobs in the working forest,” said Gallant. “When I was first elected, the old Chrétien government softwood lumber policy was causing significant unemployment in my riding. Worried softwood lumber producers called my office on a regular basis with the hope that a resolution regarding the softwood lumber dispute was over.”

In the past the U.S. has introduced anti-dumping and countervailing duty investigations against Canadian softwood lumber. Time and time again, Canada has successfully defended itself against those actions. However there are always companies that fall off along the way.

“Ben Hokum & Son Limited in Killaloe, Murray Brothers in Madawaska, McRae Lumber in Whitney, Lavern Heideman & Sons in Eganville, Gulick Forest Products Limited, Randy Commanda Forestry at Pikwakanagan, Thomas J. Neuman Limited, Pastway Planing in Palmer Rapids, and Bell Lumber in Renfrew are just a few of the businesses in my riding that are affected every time there is a softwood lumber dispute.”