New Democrats celebrates victory over SPP

OTTAWA – Peter Julian International Trade Critic for the New Democrats celebrated today the quiet cancellation of the Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP) initiative.

“This victory is the result of the active and sustained efforts across the country, and across North America, of Canadian, Mexican and American activists from the labour movement, civil society, progressive legislators and all those concerned and committed to build a better quality of life in our Canada and throughout North America”, said Julian

The SPP was not part of the discussion at the last North American Leaders’ Summit. The official SPP Website in the US is no longer active and has become an archive of SPP documents.

In March 2005, the Martin Liberal Government committed Canada to a “Security and Prosperity Partnership” with the United States and Mexico. The SPP agenda covered over 300 policy areas, including pesticide use, food safety and air safety, as well as matters involving the central control from Washington over Canadian national security and energy resources.

“The SPP lowered standards in a broad range of areas that impact every facet of our lives, including Canada’s existence as a sovereign country. It undermined the abilities of democratic governments to make decisions in the best interest of its people”, said Julian “We all know that The Canadian Council of Chief Executives and other big business advocates will continue the drive to push similar agendas on Canadians. We will carry on monitoring and advocating to stop those agendas”.

The New Democrats conducted a national “STOP SPP” public tour in cooperation with allied groups and concerned citizens and involved most of the MPs from the New Democrat caucus. The tour took Julian to nearly 30 cities to help inform Canadians about the realities of the SPP agenda and its serious implications for Canada. Thousands of Canadians attended these events and signed “STOP SPP” petitions.

The New Democrat STOP SPP campaign will have its final event tonight on Parliament Hill in Ottawa at 7:15PM. Julian, is hosting the launch of the national tour of You, me and the SPP: Trading Democracy for Corporate Rule (by Filmmaker Paul Manly) and will include a panel with some of the key civil society representatives fighting against the SPP including Maude Barlow (Council of Canadians), Teresa Healy (Senior Researcher, Canadian Labour Congress), Bruce Campbell (Executive Director, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives) and Louise Casselman (Common Frontiers).