Again, there's been a lot of conversation about dispute resolution here and certainly across the globe. In every agreement—most recently, the USMCA—we're looking at the transparency of that process, and what Canadians know or understand. Of course, we're very happy in the NDP to see that the ISDS is removed in the new USMCA. Chapter 11 was a secret tribunal and panel that wasn't accessible to Canadians.
This amendment is an attempt to provide transparency and to insist that the final report of the panels be published, in contrast to the language of “if they wish to publish”. When we provide an opportunity for people to not be transparent, unfortunately, the result most often is that they aren't. They don't provide the information, because it's not actually a requirement.
If we're to continue the conversation around dispute resolution, whether we're talking ISDS, member to member, or all the different ones that can occur in trade agreements, I think it's very important that we see an accounting of it, and that instead of having an option, there is an actual publication of the dispute panels and of the disputes.
I would say too that being able to see and understand what disputes have been brought, and the ruling on those disputes, is also very helpful to companies, small businesses and labour. It really creates a path forward to meaningfully address the issues we have.
I can tell you that I just came back from the U.S., and there was a lot of discussion there about our chapter 19. There was a lot of discussion about dairy, about diafiltered milk and issues that have been brought forward. Softwood lumber is still being discussed down there. It is a very serious issue for them.
These things have been brought to dispute resolution panels or have gone through a dispute resolution process, but again, it's hidden. No one really knows or understands, unless you're a lawyer who's presiding over these things or you're part of those arbitration panels. There isn't a great understanding in the public of what dispute resolution is. Over the summer, a lot of people were asking me in my riding, “Why is it important to have chapter 19?” It was a recurring theme in the new NAFTA that we had to have some form of dispute resolution. “Why is that?” People are now asking, “What is that?”
If we were able to share and have a publication, this would be an attempt to have transparency so that there's a general understanding in the public. It would also be a benefit to our businesses and our SMEs. If they see a similar case and know that other things have been brought or have an interest in something that's being brought, it would be a way to bring this to light and to have a national conversation about how we address issues and resolve them in a trade agreement.