Gord Brown participates in delegation to Washington

February 05, 2007

Ottawa - Gord Brown, MP for Leeds-Grenville travels to Washington this week for a three-day conference to discuss issues of mutual importance with representatives and committees from the United States government.

Two senators and six members of parliament will spend Wednesday to Friday discussing issues such as the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, inspections and fees at border crossings, Canada-US energy relations and North American competitiveness.

"These issues are of major importance to Canadians and to the North American economy," explains Brown. "I am pleased to be asked to participate in this series of meetings."

Brown explains that the Canadian delegates will continue to build relations with their US counterparts in order to work together to resolve these issues that affect both countries.

"Here in Leeds-Grenville we see the results of the competitiveness issue," says Brown. "We are losing manufacturing and jobs to more competitive countries. A made-in-North-America solution is better than trying to resolve the problem by ourselves."

He notes that the effects of the WHTI are also being felt in the riding as people are lining up for passports to be able to fly into the United States. Canadian delegates will work to slow the implementation of some of the portions of the WHTI which could see major changes at land crossings as early as next year.

"We can work with our counterparts in the US to resolve these issues," says Brown