OTTAWA -- Trade Minister David Emerson says it's unlikely there will be a final softwood deal with the United States before Parliament breaks this week.
He said negotiations on a tentative agreement will likely continue through the summer recess.
"Candidly, it's a little doubtful right now,'' Emerson said after meeting his provincial counterparts.
"We're very close -- I'm very optimistic that we're going to get a deal done. We will continue to work throughout the summer, if necessary.''
There have been growing signs the much-celebrated agreement is coming unravelled.
Nearly two months after Prime Minister Stephen Harper stood in Parliament and trumpeted an agreement, the countries remain far apart over several key details.
They missed a deadline last week to agree on a legal text for the seven-year deal that would replace U.S. duties on Canadian lumber with a Canadian export tax or quota on shipments.
Sources say the sides cannot agree on details of a quota system and a dispute-resolution mechanism, and also disagree on B.C.'s market-based timber-pricing reforms.
Those differences all but rule out a resolution before the summer parliamentary recess.
That means Harper faces the politically irksome prospect of heading to Washington in two weeks without a coveted deal in hand.
The prime minister had touted the softwood deal as proof that his good relationship with U.S. President George W. Bush had borne fruit for Canadians.
The latest setback could leave Harper with no successes to point to when he heads south for a meeting with a president who is deeply unpopular in Canada.
The softwood dispute has ranked alongside the Iraq war and the missile-defence project as among the worst political irritants between Canada and the U.S.
Emerson downplayed the importance of getting a deal before Harper's visit to Washington.
"It's not a deadline I'm working to,'' Emerson said.
"My interest -- and I think the government of Canada's interest -- is in getting a deal in place that meets the needs of Canadian industry.''
"It is not driven by the prime minister-presidential visit.''
The tentative deal came four years after the U.S. government began imposing duties totalling more than 27 per cent on some Canadian lumber.
Successive reviews lowered the rate to 11 per cent, but Canadian companies have paid more than $5 billion US -- most of which they would get back under the proposed deal.
The U.S. government has ignored several rulings by a NAFTA panel that the duties are illegal. The Americans pointed instead to its victories at the World Trade Organization.
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/story.html?id=e456551e-c0e9-4dc0-9a42-954d97560dca&k=9365
He said negotiations on a tentative agreement will likely continue through the summer recess.
"Candidly, it's a little doubtful right now,'' Emerson said after meeting his provincial counterparts.
"We're very close -- I'm very optimistic that we're going to get a deal done. We will continue to work throughout the summer, if necessary.''
There have been growing signs the much-celebrated agreement is coming unravelled.
Nearly two months after Prime Minister Stephen Harper stood in Parliament and trumpeted an agreement, the countries remain far apart over several key details.
They missed a deadline last week to agree on a legal text for the seven-year deal that would replace U.S. duties on Canadian lumber with a Canadian export tax or quota on shipments.
Sources say the sides cannot agree on details of a quota system and a dispute-resolution mechanism, and also disagree on B.C.'s market-based timber-pricing reforms.
Those differences all but rule out a resolution before the summer parliamentary recess.
That means Harper faces the politically irksome prospect of heading to Washington in two weeks without a coveted deal in hand.
The prime minister had touted the softwood deal as proof that his good relationship with U.S. President George W. Bush had borne fruit for Canadians.
The latest setback could leave Harper with no successes to point to when he heads south for a meeting with a president who is deeply unpopular in Canada.
The softwood dispute has ranked alongside the Iraq war and the missile-defence project as among the worst political irritants between Canada and the U.S.
Emerson downplayed the importance of getting a deal before Harper's visit to Washington.
"It's not a deadline I'm working to,'' Emerson said.
"My interest -- and I think the government of Canada's interest -- is in getting a deal in place that meets the needs of Canadian industry.''
"It is not driven by the prime minister-presidential visit.''
The tentative deal came four years after the U.S. government began imposing duties totalling more than 27 per cent on some Canadian lumber.
Successive reviews lowered the rate to 11 per cent, but Canadian companies have paid more than $5 billion US -- most of which they would get back under the proposed deal.
The U.S. government has ignored several rulings by a NAFTA panel that the duties are illegal. The Americans pointed instead to its victories at the World Trade Organization.
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/story.html?id=e456551e-c0e9-4dc0-9a42-954d97560dca&k=9365
