By MARK BROWNLEE
A border security agreement reached between Canada and the United States in February would weaken the Canadian government's ability to protect its citizens from food diseases, say the NDP and Liberals.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper and U.S. President Barack Obama announced in February they were beginning negotiations to look at ways of harmonizing the two countries' border security arrangements and come up with mutual plans for inspection procedures and information sharing.
The two leaders established the Canada-United States Regulatory Cooperation Council, a new council to work towards creating a security perimeter around the two countries. The council is supposed to examine issues of trade and security. Mr. Harper said at the time that the plan is to harmonize many of Canada's border rules and to increase the sharing of information. The hope is to alleviate some of the United States' security concerns and remove barriers to trade of goods, such as food, between the two countries.
At a joint press conference in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 4, Mr. Harper said "Not to replace or eliminate the border, but where possible, to streamline and decongest it. There is much work to do. The declaration marks the start of this endeavour, not the end."
Few details about the negotiations, including the costs, have been released.
The NDP is opposed to the Conservatives negotiating the deal because NDP incumbent Paul Dewar, who is running for re-election, said the party is worried an agreement could create less stringent regulations for ensuring safety in food products.
"What are the standards we're employing? Are they going to be stricter? Are they going to be laxer? If they're laxer, we have a problem with that," said Mr. Dewar.
full article http://www.hilltimes.com/page/view/foodsafety-04-11-2011
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