 |
Labour Views
with Suzette Montreuil
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
There's a new kid on the block in the world of trade agreements. It's called the Trade, Investment and Labour Mobility Agreement (TILMA).
Right now, it is a pact between Alberta and British Columbia. There is interest in other provinces to sign this agreement. The GNWT and the Yukon will be under pressure to do so as well.
So why should this matter? It matters because TILMA poses a threat to local democracy, public health and the environment.
The agreement will function like a municipal version of the North American Free Trade Agreement. It gives the private sector the right to sue local or provincial governments for measures that "restrict or impair" trade, investment or labour mobility.
Examples at the municipal level include zoning bylaws and local procurement policies. Regulations in one jurisdiction different from those in another that is party to the agreement can be challenged. An example would be the NWT's Business Incentive Policy or northern hiring quotas.
It doesn't matter if the purpose of the measure is noble, such as health care or protecting the environment. Governments can still be brought to task and made to pay heavy finds, according to the Council of Canadians.
Health services are exempt in the North American Free Trade Agreement, but not in TILMA. So private insurance companies could challenge governments on measures that are required to deliver quality publicly-funded health care.
The mobility agreement places our beloved Medicare system in jeopardy. Do you think the right of a corporation to make money is more important than your health?
The B.C. government tried to reassure its citizens that the agreement doesn't apply if a government is pursuing legitimate objectives. However,legitimate objectives are very narrowly defined in the agreement.
If a challenge is made, a trade panel will weigh the evidence and decide if the government involved has taken the least restrictive measure possible.
Anyone who follows the trade world knows that trade panels have a history of more often than not ruling against governments.
Trade panels also determine the how much money will be paid to the individual or company making the challenge with penalties as high as $5 million.
Yellowknife city council recognized the mobility agreement would give private individuals and corporations the extraordinary right to challenge important local regulations and public-interest decisions.
They wisely passed a resolution opposing the agreement, as did the NWT Association of Communities. The NWT Area Council of the Public Service Alliance recognized the threat to working conditions and added its voice to the growing opposition against the agreement.
Clearly, the territorial government should not sign on to TILMA. To do so would be to the peril of workers, our public services and even measures to promote Northern economic development.
- Suzette Montreuil is president of the NWT Area Council of the Public Service Alliance of Canada