The federal government in Ottawa is pushing back against the latest U.S. decision to keep imposing duties on Canadian softwood lumber.

Canada has filed for a judicial review of last monthB次元官网网址檚 Commerce Department assessment of the levies, which International Trade Minister Mary Ng described in a statement as B次元官网网址渦nfair, unjust and illegal.B次元官网网址�

Ng framed the move as an effort to escalate the concerns of exporters while adding an impetus on the U.S. to consider a negotiated solution to a dispute that has plagued Canada-U.S. relations for decades.

B次元官网网址淲e have to continue to explore new ways (to resolve it), because the industry expects us, expects me and expects my government to B次元官网网址� (and) so do their workers,B次元官网网址� she said Tuesday during a cabinet retreat in Charlottetown.

B次元官网网址淚t would be much, much more preferable that we get to the negotiating table, and letB次元官网网址檚 come together and letB次元官网网址檚 have a deal. But in the meantime, weB次元官网网址檙e going to use all the tools at our disposal to stand up for the industry.B次元官网网址�

The latest administrative review by the U.S. Commerce Department resulted in a modest decrease in the so-called B次元官网网址渁ll othersB次元官网网址� combined duty rate, but kept it in place at 7.99 per cent.

In Canada, lumber-producing provinces set so-called stumpage fees for timber harvested from Crown land, a system that U.S. producers B次元官网网址� forced to pay market rates B次元官网网址� say amounts to an unfair subsidy.

ItB次元官网网址檚 not the first time Ng has pushed her U.S. counterparts to help hammer out a solution. But U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai has said negotiations can only happen once Canada does away with its stumpage fee regime.

B次元官网网址淲e continue to share with the Canadians that we are committed to the robust enforcement of U.S. trade remedy laws,B次元官网网址� TaiB次元官网网址檚 office said in a statement.

Pushing back against B次元官网网址渦nfairly traded Canadian importsB次元官网网址� remains a priority for the Biden administration, it added.

B次元官网网址淲e are prepared to discuss another softwood lumber agreement when Canada is ready to address the underlying issues related to subsidization and fair competition so that Canadian lumber imports do not injure the U.S. industry.B次元官网网址�

Canada, meanwhile, has successfully argued at World Trade Organization dispute panels in the past that its stumpage-fee system is not a subsidy, which is exactly why the government feels it remains in the right, Ng said.

B次元官网网址淚 mean, it has ruled exactly that conclusion to Canada, which is why itB次元官网网址檚 so important that Canada continues to defend our interests against these tariffs.B次元官网网址�

The Commerce DepartmentB次元官网网址檚 fourth administrative review of the duties, announced last month, established a combined rate of 7.99 per cent, only slightly less than the 8.59 per cent established after its previous review.

That decision was cheered by U.S. lumber producers, who say the duties keep the playing field level south of the border and allow the domestic forestry and construction industries to thrive.

Such enforcement B次元官网网址渋s exactly what must happen for enduring expansion of U.S. lumber manufacturing and availability to meet demand to build more American homes,B次元官网网址� said Andrew Miller, chairman of the U.S. Lumber Coalition.

B次元官网网址淔ailure to fully enforce the trade laws would only undermine long-term confidence in expanding U.S. sawmilling capacity and jobs in the American softwood lumber industry.B次元官网网址�

The U.S. industry B次元官网网址渞emains openB次元官网网址� to a new agreement on softwood lumber, but Canadian producers have yet to agree on a B次元官网网址渦nified positionB次元官网网址� that would allow the two governments to negotiate one, the coalition says.

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