The recent dispute between Alberta and Saskatchewan over license plates turned a new page yesterday (December 14th).

Last week, the Saskatchewan Government imposed a ban on all construction vehicles using an Alberta license plate on new road projects. The government said it made the move due to similar restraints imposed on Saskatchewan vehicles at Alberta job sites.

Alberta's Minister of Trade Deron Bilous and Transportation Minister Brian Mason said those claims are false and gave Saskatchewan until December 13th to withdraw that ban. The deadline passed and now Alberta is taking action.

Minister Bilous said he officially filed a complaint with the New West Trade Agreement, saying it directly violated that charter.

"Initiating the dispute resolution process means an impartial, arbitration panel that will make a binding decision on this matter. It also means, the Saskatchewan Government can be penalized up to $5 Million. We have every confidence that we will win this dispute."

Bilous said whatever money Alberta is awarded will go directly to the construction companies affected by this decision.

The arbitration panel has 30 days to collect whatever evidence they need before meeting in Lloydminster in January. Bilous hopes that Saskatchewan will use the 30 days to back away and rescind their recent policies and avoid what he calls an unnecessary penalty.

"What this essentially does, and the Government of Saskatchewan is going to see, going to court is going to cost them money and when the courts rule in favour of Alberta, they're going to be paying a fee and they can explain that to their tax payers that they're wasting tax payer dollars on a dispute that is clearly in violation of a trade agreement."

Other issues have risen from this dispute, including Alberta's openings to the craft beer market and no PST in the province, while Saskatchewan raised theirs in March.

Minister Mason said he's confused by these matters of the dispute and had only one way to describe the fiasco.

"It's annoying. It's unnecessary, I think that's what it is. It's frustrating. It seems to me, and I'll go out on a limb here and say that it seems fabricated to me for some reason and I don't know why."

Representatives in the Saskatchewan Government said they do have evidence of Alberta imposing license plate bans in the province but say they don't want to disclose them for the safety of the companies involved.

 

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