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Bilous says Alberta pushing for trade meeting with Saskatchewan in Lloydminster, not Medicine Hat

Jan 16, 2018 | 12:38 PM

 

MEDICINE HAT, AB — Deron Bilous, the Minister of Economic Development and Trade for Alberta, says the province will continue to push for a meeting with Saskatchewan in Lloydminster rather than in Medicine Hat in an attempt to resolve an ongoing trade dispute.

On Monday, Bilous says Saskatchewan had agreed to meet with Alberta on January 31 in an attempt to resolve the dispute involving a ban on Alberta license plates on Saskatchewan job sites. Saskatchewan says the ban is in response to a similar ban on Saskatchewan plates in Alberta, but Bilous says one isn’t in place.

The meeting date comes nine days after a deadline for Saskatchewan to drop the ban. If they don’t, binding arbitration under the New West trade partnership gets underway. Alberta filed the legal challenge under the partnership between the four western provinces last month.

The issue of the meeting’s location is also being challenged. Bilous says Alberta and Saskatchewan originally agreed to meet in Lloydminster, which straddles the two borders. Bilous says recently, Saskatchewan has asked to move the meeting to Medicine Hat, with Bilous saying it would be easier for Saskatchewan ministers to travel to Medicine Hat from Regina.

Bilous, speaking over the phone from Edmonton on Tuesday, says he understands Medicine Hat and area businesses have been impacted by the dispute, but says the government is planning to continue pushing for the Lloydminster meeting.

“That was the original location that was agreed to when Minister (Brian) Mason and I were on the phone with Ministers (Steven) Bonk and (David) Marit back in December,” he said. “They agreed to (Lloydminster).

Bilous adds a second reason the government chose Lloydminster was “The fact that the Heavy Construction Association (in Lloydminster) has agreed to host us, and ensure that they can clearly articulate the impact that this restriction is having on both sides of the border.”

Bilous says the province is hoping for Saskatchewan to reverse its ban before the January 22 deadline, noting there is a significant financial penalty for Saskatchewan if they have been found to have contravened the trade partnership.

“If they do nothing, as of January 22nd, another process starts, and there will be penalties of up to $5 million, and we are confident from all of our trade experts,” he said.

“Again, we know that Alberta does not do this to Saskatchewan plates, we do not have this discriminatory restriction on Saskatchewan. It’s not trade compliant, they are going to lose, they’re going to have a monetary penalty, and then the Government of Saskatchewan can explain to Saskatchewan taxpayers why they’re wasting dollars on something they know they’re going to lose.”

CHAT News has reached out to Bonk, the Minister of Economy for Saskatchewan, for comment on the issue. We received a statement from the government’s office in response.

The statement reads “Saskatchewan ministers involved in trade and construction are planning to meet with their Alberta counterparts on January 31.  At this time, the location has yet to be determined, but Medicine Hat was discussed with Alberta as a location that may work for all travelling parties.”

-With Files from the Canadian Press