International Trade Committee on June 5th, 2006

[David Emerson, Conservative, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

We're clearly looking at all of the legal cases and assessing our position. I think we have to recognize, though, that when you come to a negotiated settlement, we're asking the Americans to cease and desist from taking further actions as well. And while it may appear that we are giving up on certain legal cases if we all set aside our litigation, we're also winning in terms of immunity from further cases. As I said before, when you're going into, as we may be, a period when the U.S. housing market is looking a bit shaky and prices are not as robust as they were a few months ago, the data on which past American cases have been fought are changing. I think if we do not have a negotiated settlement, if we do not have a commitment from the Americans not to pursue further litigation, we will find ourselves facing more attempts to claim injury or threat of injury, and in a soft market it's a lot easier to make a claim of threat of injury than it is in a hot market, which we've had recently.

So we will do our best to try to preserve our legal victories. I'm personally of the view that it is more important than ever that we work closely with the Canadian and American industry together, collaboratively, and work together with the government of the United States to ensure that we do not see creeping protectionism manifesting itself in regulatory and legal changes that could make it even worse for us going forward.

I know there are lawyers who read the law and they pound the table and say we're just that close to winning it all, but I tell you, I've been in this industry a long time, and every time you think you're winning they come up with another little twist, and they come at you again. That's been the history of the file over and over again.

I recall when I was in the forest industry and we were just beginning the latest fight on softwood lumber, and the Byrd amendment came up. We kept hearing from lawyers that there was a movement in Congress that they could put in place a legal mechanism whereby the duties we paid could be distributed to the American companies that brought the case. Our lawyers--the best lawyers that we could pay in Washington--said “Oh, no, that'll never happen. The President will veto it. It won't pass Congress.” It won't this, it won't that. Well, you now know what happened. Something that seemed egregious and completely counter to any normal trade policy was put in place, and now we have the Byrd amendment until November 1 of next year.

So you just can't underestimate the degree to which legislators in the U.S. can turn on you if it's to their advantage to do so.

[The Chair, Conservative, Leon Benoit]

Thank you, Mr. Minister.

Mr. Miller, you have only a couple of minutes, so please go ahead.

[Larry Miller, Conservative, Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound, ON]

Thank you, Mr. Chair, and thanks for being here, Mr. Minister.

This is my first chance to sit in on the international trade committee, and I've learned a lot today.

I just wanted to make a comment to my colleague. I have a number of furniture builders, three actually, in my riding, and other than the difference in the dollar--our high dollar--they're very competitive.

In the past, Mr. Minister, one of the tools that ITCan has used to promote international business and development around the world is its Team Canada missions. These missions involve sending a delegation of politicians and business leaders to specific countries. I think some of the most recent ones have been to Brazil in 2004, China in January 2005, and again to India in April of that year. I'm sure there's a great benefit to these. Do you have any idea how much these missions would typically cost?

Secondly, what performance measures are in place to tell you how well they're doing, that kind of thing?

[David Emerson, Conservative, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

I have to confess I'm not a really big booster of big Team Canada missions. There may be a place for them in terms of getting publicity in a given marketplace, in terms of incremental value added, in terms of securing deals or joint ventures. I believe we have to be more focused, more selective, probably go on smaller, better-defined, more specialized missions where we're targeting getting commercial deals done, getting specific objectives accomplished. In that sense it's going to be cheaper, and you're going to have a much more precise sense of what you're trying to achieve. That would be my general approach.

How much these things have cost in the past--I'll have to ask my officials to give you some idea. I've never been on one, because even when I was in private industry I always thought if you didn't go ten times, let's say to China, to work out the details of a commercial arrangement, just going along with the Prime Minister and waving flags wasn't going to do it for you. That would be my general approach.

Do you have a sense of cost?

[Kathryn E. McCallion, Assistant Deputy Minister, Corporate Services, Passport and Consular Affairs, Foreign Affairs and International Trade]

I don't have the precise figures. I can send them to you. But I can tell you, the business people themselves, it's a cost recovery. They contribute to their airfare, they get there, then they're usually hosted by the other government, and the costs of the Prime Minister or the minister's activity is a government expense. We can itemize it for you and let you know.

[Larry Miller, Conservative, Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound, ON]

Yes, I would be interested in seeing that., Mr. Chairman.

[Kathryn E. McCallion]

For those three: China, India, and Brazil?

[The Chair, Conservative, Leon Benoit]

We'll look for that, and there's some other information promised by the minister, so we'll look for that as well.

We're out of time for this meeting. I'd like to thank you very much, Minister Emerson, and your officials for coming today. I very much appreciated your presentation and the answers to the questions. I'm sure we'll see you again in the not too distant future. Thank you.

Before we adjourn the meeting, we are dealing with the estimates today.

Mr. Cannan, you wanted to make a motion on the estimates?

[Ron Cannan, Conservative, Kelowna—Lake Country, BC]

Yes. Can I do them as a lump, or do I have to...?

[The Chair, Conservative, Leon Benoit]

Try as a lump, and we'll see how it goes.

[Ron Cannan, Conservative, Kelowna—Lake Country, BC]

I'll cluster them together.

I move that this committee adopt votes 15, 20, 25, and 65 in the 2006-07 main estimates under Foreign Affairs and International Trade. I'd like to seek unanimous consent of the committee, please.

[The Chair, Conservative, Leon Benoit]

Does the committee agree?

I'd just like to make the point before we actually deal with it that nine-twelfths of the vote amount in the estimates have already been approved through interim supply. We're actually only dealing with the other three-twelfths--a quarter, that is. I just want to clarify that.

All in favour?

(Motion agreed to) [See Minutes of Proceedings]

[The Chair, Conservative, Leon Benoit]

The meeting is adjourned.