Amendments to Act for National Trade Dispute Resolution Introduced

New legislation introduced today, Sept. 28, will strengthen a national agreement on trade dispute resolution.

An Act to Amend the Internal Trade Agreement Implementation Act will allow governments in Canada to enforce financial penalties resulting from any unresolved future trade disputes. All provinces, the federal government and participating territories have committed to the same course of action.

"We are committed to doing our part to build stronger internal trade practices within Canada," said Economic and Rural Development Minister Percy Paris. "Working together to develop and maintain an open and efficient domestic market makes business sense at any time, and more so during the economic challenges we are currently facing."

The revised government-to-government dispute resolution tool will allow for monetary penalties for continued non-compliance with agreement obligations. Once all governments have acted, the strengthened dispute resolution will take effect with the common goal to enable people, goods, services and investments to move freely across the country.

The internal trade agreement establishes a framework for Canadian governments to work together to develop and maintain an open and efficient domestic market. It applies across the economy but also has specific rules covering government procurement, labour mobility, consumer-related measures and standards, agricultural food goods, alocholic beverages, natural resources processing, communications, transportation, and environmental protection.