Canadian Parliamentarians Attend the
Annual Summit of the Pacific NorthWest Economic Region
From 16-20 July 2010, the Honourable
Senator Wilfred Moore, Q.C., led a delegation of selected members of the
Canadian Section of the Canada-United States Inter-Parliamentary Group (IPG) to
the Annual Summit of the Pacific NorthWest Economic Region (PNWER), entitled:
“An Energized Outlook: Leading the Way,” in Calgary, Alberta. In addition to
Senator Moore, the summit was attended by the Honourable Senator Raynell
Andreychuk, the Honourable Hedy Fry, P.C., M.P. and Mr. LaVar Payne, M.P.
The Annual Summit covered a wide range
of topics, including border issues, energy, transportation, water policy and
the environment. Of particular interest to the IPG delegates were the sessions
on the oil sands and the steps that are being taken to mitigate the
environmental impacts of oil sands production.
Senator Moore stated that it was very
beneficial for Canadian members of the IPG to attend these meetings and cited
the fact that they had learned from US officials here that the US Department of
Homeland Security is going to issue the “Northern Border Strategy” this fall.
This document will set out the updated policy of the US with regard to the
border it shares with Canada. Senator Moore went on to say that the delegates
hope that this strategy does not create any further delays in the timely
movement of legitimate people and goods between our two countries.
IPG members believe that these
parliamentary exchanges are essential in order to understand better and
ultimately resolve the issues facing our two countries. For this reason, they
believe that the IPG should continue to participate in these meetings.
It should be noted that the views
expressed in this news release are specific to the Canadian Section of the
Canada-United States Inter-Parliamentary Group and, as such, may not reflect
the views of our United States counterparts.
The Canada-United States Inter-Parliamentary
Group aims to find points of convergence in respective national policies, to
initiate dialogue on points of divergence, to encourage the exchange of
information, and to promote better understanding among legislators on shared
issues of concern. Additional information on the Group can be found at:
www.parl.gc.ca/iia/us.
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For further information: Hon. Janis G. Johnson, Senator, Co-Chair, Canada-US
Inter-Parliamentary Group
613-943-1430
Mr. Gord Brown, M.P., Co-Chair, Canada- US Inter-Parliamentary Group
613-992-8756
Mr. Chad Mariage, Executive Secretary, Canada-US Inter-Parliamentary Group
613-944-4238