Disaster averted

While talk about the latest anti-government fad agreement heats up in Saskatchewan and nationwide, CUPW reports that the previous one thankfully hasn't proven quite as harmful as it could have, as UPS' challenge against Canada Post has been rejected by a NAFTA tribunal:

The Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) and Council of Canadians (Council) are pleased that United Parcel Service's complaint under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) has been rejected by the tribunal hearing the case.

United Parcel Service (UPS) sued Canada over six years ago, under NAFTA’s Chapter 11, which allows corporations to challenge governments if they think their investments are restricted by government measures. UPS claimed that its investments were being restricted by Canada’s publicly funded network of mailboxes and post offices because this network allegedly provided Canada Post with an unfair advantage. The tribunal had already dismissed several elements of the claim.

The federal government’s media release on the final decision indicates that the tribunal dismissed allegations of unfair treatment with respect to the postal network, customs and the Canadian Heritage Publications Assistance Program. The government says that it will release the full decision within thirty days.

“We are very happy that the tribunal rejected UPS’s complaint but that doesn’t mean we think NAFTA works,” said CUPW National President Deborah Bourque. “NAFTA allowed UPS to put public postal service and jobs on trial. A secret trial.”

Unfortunately, there's no assurance that the next equally dangerous challenge under NAFTA won't lead to massive intrusions against Canada's ability to act for itself. But it's at least a plus that Canada Post is safe for now - even if the challenge only highlights just how much we stand to lose through ill-thought-out trade deals.