International Trade Minister Ed Fast says Canada plans to fight the ‘Buy American' provisions in the new U.S. stimulus package, proposed by U.S. President Barack Obama.
Obama is backing a US$447-billion bill to help revive the stalled U.S. economy. But the details, unveiled Tuesday, are ruffling feathers here in Canada because they contain protectionist measures similar to Washington's original stimulus package in 2009.
Fast said in a release Wednesday the provisions are not acceptable to Canada. He says his government is committed to defending free and open trade on the world stage.
Fast adds that "history has shown that protectionist measures stall growth and kill jobs."
Section 4 of the stimulus bill is headed "Buy American -- Use of American Iron, Steel and Manufactured Goods." It contains a directive that none of the funds made available under the American Jobs Act be used for "the construction, alteration, maintenance, or repair of a public building or public work unless all of the iron, steel and manufactured goods used in the project are produced in the United States."
The bill calls for more than $100 billion towards the renovation of schools, the construction of roads and bridges and improving transit.
Fast says he has instructed his officials to initiate a consultation process that was established as part of the 2010 Canada-U.S. deal on government procurement.
But the Council of Canadians says it would rather see the federal government let the government procurement agreement expire.
The Council also wants Ottawa to follow Obama's lead and increase funding to municipal infrastructure – while attaching "Buy Canadian"' conditions.
Stuart Trew, trade campaigner for the Council of Canadians, says the 2010 agreement was signed without public debate and was unbalanced to begin with.
"It was a lopsided deal. If Obama's new 'Buy American' rules kill it, then good riddance. We can do much better for our municipalities and the thousands of workers still looking or who have stopped looking for work," he said in a Council release.
Meera Karunananthan, water campaigner for the Council of Canadians, says the country really needs to be focusing on upgrading its own infrastructure.
"Canada's cities and towns need over $30 billion in water system upgrades alone and another $100 billion for other badly needed infrastructure. Harper's procurement deal did nothing to speed up those projects; it just made sure if they did get built, it was difficult to ‘Buy Canadian'," she said in a statement.
