Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to have this opportunity to respond to the question asked by the hon. member concerning the United States' reaction to certain provincial programs announced by Ontario. I would like to take this opportunity to once again remind my colleagues of the wide ranging benefits of this great agreement.
Key lumber producing provinces like British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec, as well as a clear majority of the industry players signalled their strong support for the agreement from an early stage. We worked hard together with the provinces and industry to address a broad range of concerns.
The final agreement reflects this work. It revokes the U.S. duty orders and terminates all litigation. It provides at least seven years of stability to the Canadian softwood lumber industry. It includes a number of initiatives to make North America's lumber industry more competitive over the long term. And importantly, it safeguards the provinces' ability to manage their forests.
The softwood lumber agreement was and is the single best way forward for this industry and the hundreds of thousands of Canadians in communities that rely on it every single day.
I can assure my colleague, the hon. member for Kenora, that the agreement has not suffered any lack of attention from the Government of Canada. Our work certainly did not end on October 12, the day the agreement entered into force. The enabling legislation was passed on December 14, 2006. The government has continued to consult closely with provinces and industry as we work to implement the agreement. Federal officials are in regular contact through conference calls and face to face meetings with their provincial counterparts and continue to consult with industry stakeholders. For example, federal officials have held several consultation sessions with industry in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario and Quebec during the last three months.
As provided for under the agreement, we have established a binational softwood lumber committee to supervise the administration of the agreement. Its inaugural meeting took place in Washington, D.C. on February 22 and 23, 2007.
This meeting was an opportunity for representatives from Canada and the United States to have a useful discussion on issues related to the softwood lumber agreement, issues of importance to Canada, such as setting up a process for determining regional exemptions from export measures and possible exclusions for softwood lumber products made from logs harvested from private lands.
The softwood lumber committee also established three technical working groups that began exchanging information and that will continue to facilitate communication between Canadian and American technical experts to assist in the smooth administration of the agreement.
As has been reported, the United States indicated prior to the meeting that it intended to raise some questions about certain programs implemented by the federal, Ontario and Quebec governments aimed at addressing certain challenges faced by the softwood lumber industry.
Ontario and Quebec government officials participated in the softwood lumber committee meeting and their respective programs were discussed with the United States. As my colleague the hon. Minister of International Trade already stated, this was a very cordial first meeting with positive, constructive dialogue taking place.
Following the softwood lumber committee meeting, the United States requested consultations under the agreement on a number of provincial programs as well as federal programs and Canada's interpretation of a provision of the agreement. As the government has pointed out before, consultations involve a more formal exchange of information and are designed to help resolve differences through a better understanding of the measures at issue.
The consultations occurred in Ottawa on April 19, 2007 between Canada and the American federal officials. Provincial officials from Ontario and Quebec attended the consultations for the portion of the discussion related to their respective provincial programs. The consultations were constructive and positive and provided a useful opportunity to clarify issues and concerns identified by the United States. U.S. officials are now reviewing the information that Canada provided and will contact us if they have any further questions or concerns.
As we have always maintained, both Canada and the United States have an interest in ensuring the agreement operates smoothly. Disagreements are inevitable in administering and implementing such a complex agreement. It was for this reason that we included in the agreement various provisions to allow for a full exchange--