Investment rather than welfare
St. Boniface - Friday, October 11, 2002 - by: Mike Reilly
trade dispute	The current softwood lumber trade dispute might take two years to resolve Herb Dhaliwal hinted when unveiling his aid package recently. This industry that contributes nearly $30 billion yearly to the Canadian economy is in need of more than a short term welfare programme.
raw logs	the United States demand for lumber far exceeds its own supply. Its construction industry would collapse without Canadian softwood. The US lumber lobby wants to choke the flow of Canadian lumber in order to raise the value of US timber holdings, while at the same time increasing the access to Canadian raw logs which may be refined in idle US mills. The proof of this is that raw logs are not considered under the current tariffs although they grow on the same Crown land and the stumpage is paid in the tree volume, regardless of the end product.
value added	Rather than retraining displaced workers in skills with limited demand in forestry based communities a long term approach is preferable. Encourage forest companies to produce goods beyond the raw lumber: truss systems, pre-fabricated wall panels and other manufactured wood products necessary to both the domestic and export market.
investing	Governments speak of "investing" tax dollars.
worth while expenditure	Assistance through reduced or deferred tax incentives for companies to re-tool their operations to produce new value added products and train workers in these highly skilled positions would pay dividends for those involved and the economy as a whole. This would be a worthwhile expenditure of some of the $40 billion surplus in the Employment Insurance fund
future	Most assuredly growth for the future rather than short term palliative care is what should be put in place.
	Mike Reilly
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