Refine by MP, party, committee, province, or result type.
Transport committee I'll give a brief response because I know Ian wants to add to this.
February 26th, 2013Committee meeting
Wade Sobkowich
Transport committee This is where we're at today. The railways enjoy this much power; shippers enjoy this much power. The legislation we're looking for with the amendments we propose would bring it up to somewhere in there.
February 26th, 2013Committee meeting
Wade Sobkowich
Transport committee We say cold weather happens every winter.
February 26th, 2013Committee meeting
Wade Sobkowich
Transport committee If I may, since January—and I just talked to my members yesterday about this, because I wanted the most current information on service levels—service has been very poor on both roads since January. We haven't seen service this poor, particularly from CN, in three years. Overall, the railways are delivering less than 50% of the rail cars specified by their service plan.
February 26th, 2013Committee meeting
Wade Sobkowich
Transport committee It just changed, and they say it's the cold weather.
February 26th, 2013Committee meeting
Wade Sobkowich
Transport committee Yes.
February 26th, 2013Committee meeting
Wade Sobkowich
Transport committee Are you asking me?
February 26th, 2013Committee meeting
Wade Sobkowich
Transport committee Well, different people will give you different responses, depending on where they sit. Concerning point number one, about better defining “adequate” and “suitable”, doing that helps to ensure that the service pie grows, and I think it's one that everybody here feels is an important one.
February 26th, 2013Committee meeting
Wade Sobkowich
Transport committee Can I add a little bit to that? The way we've proposed the amendment, you would have to submit to the agency for arbitration terms governing whether or not a service failure has occurred and the manner in which damages are to be assessed. So you're submitting to the agency for arbitration on whether a breach has occurred.
February 26th, 2013Committee meeting
Wade Sobkowich
Transport committee I can address that. That press release was issued on the day the bill was released. When we went through the arbitration process on that day, we were under the impression that we'd be able to take penalties and liquidated damages to the arbitrator. Since then, we've found out that's not the case.
February 26th, 2013Committee meeting
Wade Sobkowich
Transport committee Right. So the arbitrator's going to come up with a mechanism that's something in between what the railways and the shippers want for establishment of liquidated damages.
February 26th, 2013Committee meeting
Wade Sobkowich
Transport committee For sure. I guess I just go back to the principle, regardless of precedent or whatever, but I'll get that information. What is conceptually wrong with having a quick, easy, fair, expedited process to resolve a dispute?
February 26th, 2013Committee meeting
Wade Sobkowich
Transport committee I have a written answer. I'm just going to make sure I covered it here:[The] Canadian Grain Commission arbitrates disputes between grain companies and producers. Commodity exchanges arbitrate disputes between commodity dealers. Canadian grain merchants and their international customers submit disputes to arbitration through their memberships and various trade associations.
February 26th, 2013Committee meeting
Wade Sobkowich
Transport committee No, we're saying that liquidated damages would be payable to the shipper.
February 26th, 2013Committee meeting
Wade Sobkowich
Transport committee Not really. Let me just make sure I'm communicating it properly. Say, we're negotiating with a railway. We're going to arbitration because we can't reach an agreement. So the railway is going to have their position on the various elements of the service level agreement. The shipper is going to have its position on the various elements.
February 26th, 2013Committee meeting
Wade Sobkowich