Mr. Speaker, I have some news for my friend on the Liberal side. He said this was a complex issue and indeed it is. That is why there was a five year period from the time the agreement was signed in 1996 until it expired fourteen months ago in 2001. I mentioned earlier in the House today that the government could have come up with some kind of interim measures during this time period.
We appreciate the fact the government is taking a tough stance. We too want to see free trade enacted. In the meantime however there are lots of independent operators who are suffering. I have many of them in my own riding. There are remanufacturers in my riding who will likely not survive this interim period of 18 months to three years that it will take to get the litigation through at the WTO. In the meantime, these people will likely loose their jobs.
Individuals at CW Technologies in my riding were not amused with the minister's comments indicating that there had been no loss of jobs. Some 50 to 60 jobs from 115 jobs were lost with the expiration of the softwood lumber agreement. This was not due to inadequacies at the mill or the remanufacturing plant, but a direct result of not getting the product into the U.S.
Does my colleague on the government side agree that the government could lay out some specific measures for this interim period for those being hurt the most, whether it be in my riding of Dewdney--Alouette in British Columbia or any other riding in any other province across the country? Does my colleague agree that the measures suggested by the government simply do not go far enough?