The ‘Province of British Columbia Strategic Plan 2010/11 – 2012/13’ released on January 1 states that, “The governments of British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan will continue to pursue the New West Partnership, creating a broad western interprovincial trade agreement and creating the largest barrier-free trade and investment market in Canada.”
A BC government media release on their February 9 Throne Speech notes, “The New West Partnership with Alberta and Saskatchewan will build on the success of the Trade, Investment and Labour Mobility Agreement to foster free trade, investment and labour mobility, including new unified and mutually beneficial purchasing, procurment and licensing opportunities.”
Saskatchewan Federation of Labour president Larry Hubich writes that on March 30, a Notice of Motion was tabled in the BC legislature that advises that MLA Douglas Horne would be moving the following motion: “Be it resolved that this House support the creation of the New West Partnership with Alberta and Saskatchewan which will foster free trade, investment and labour mobility through the development of unified and mutually beneficial purchasing, procurement and licensing opportunities.”
Hubich states that ‘The New West Partnership’ that BC, Alberta and Saskatchewan are now pursuing is a rebranded (and expanded) Trade, Investment and Labour Mobility Agreement.
Our critique of TILMA-like interprovincial trade agreements can be read at www.canadians.org/TILMA.
Larry Hubich’s blog is at http://larryhubich.blogspot.com/2010/03/tilma-by-any-other-name-is-still-tilma.html.
