Trade Agreements Mean Less Red Tape

Filed in archive Government on August 4, 2006

At McLeans Magazine I ran across an article titled "Let's make a deal, Western-style" the subtext states:

A new, wide-ranging trade agreement between Alberta and B.C. will erase the border and create a new economic power

I live in Alberta and I can tell you that I had no idea that we were in discussions with our western neighbour on a 'trade agreement'. So I read this article with interest but have to admit that I got more confused the more I read. It wasn't until I got to one specific paragraph that I began to understand what in the world all the fuss was about. Read this:

One of the more extreme examples of interprovincial trade barriers is Quebec's margarine law. Margarine in Quebec can't be the same colour as butter -- a rule that serves to protect Quebec's dairy industry and riles margarine makers in Western Canada. Other barriers have evolved that seem to serve no purpose whatsoever: for example, the differing regulations between B.C. and Alberta over the way hay must be stacked on trucks. It forces truckers to stop at the border and adjust loads, adding needless shipping costs between the provinces. It would be easier to ship the hay down through the United States, says Mar. This will change under TILMA.

What a Bureaucratic Nightmare!

Then it dawned on me, trade agreements whether we are talking NAFTA or Interprovincial Trade Agreements are about lessening the 'red tape'.