Mr. Speaker, the Canada-European Union trade agreement is by far Canada's most ambitious trade initiative ever. Every region of this country stands to benefit, including Newfoundland and Labrador.
The minimum processing requirements fund was created to compensate for anticipated losses from the removal of minimum processing requirements. The fund was never intended as a blank cheque that would give the industry in Newfoundland and Labrador an unfair advantage over other Atlantic provinces.
We have been clear from the start that the MPR fund was to compensate for demonstrable losses. Our officials remain open to receiving proposals from their provincial counterparts on how to move forward.