Response recieved from Jack Layton after Writing against Pesticide use in Canada

I received this very thoughtful letter from Jack Layton, MP after pleading with him to not allow Canada to compromise their Environmental standards to the inferior standards of the United States. I love Canada and hate to see it "harmonize" with corporate greed based standards of my Country. He took the time to send me this response back. Check it out. Maybe with people like Jack Layton , Canada can even help America raise to Canadian standards!





"Thank you for writing to me concerning the pending changes to Canadian limits of pesticides residues in food production. The NDP is absolutely against any move to lower our standards of acceptability for pesticides in food.

According to David Boyd, an environmental lawyer and author of a 2006 study of international pesticide regulations, "We should look to equal or surpass the best in the world” instead of lowering our standards for the sake of “harmonizing” with the U.S. where regulations are among the weakest in the developed world.

This move is part of a much larger agenda called the Security and Prosperity Partnership (SSP) which seeks to achieve a “deep integration” between the US and Canada in the areas of trade and security. As political economist Gordon Laxer, Director of the Parkland Institute put it: "The real goal of the SPP is more about integrating Canada into the American way of doing things."

The SPP was initiated by the Liberal government of Paul Martin, and has been continued by the Conservative government of Stephen Harper. It’s agenda includes reducing protection in over 300 areas, including pesticide use, food safety and air safety, as well as central control from Washington over Canadian national resources - including energy.

The NDP succeeded in obtaining hearings to discuss the impact of the SPP on Canada's sovereignty and on the lack of transparency and democratic debate around this process. NDP MPs Peter Julian and Dennis Bevington have been very active in drawing attention to SSP negotiations. We have reiterated our call for a full and accountable public debate to expose the agenda around the SPP. The NDP will continue to propose an ethical and fair trade model of international trade while pushing for full parliamentary oversight and public disclosure of SPP.

The NDP has been consistent in the position that Canada should maintain strict limits on pesticide use in general. In fact, ever since my days as a city councillor in Toronto I have actively worked to reduce the use of pesticides because what we don’t know can indeed hurt us. In spring of 2006 I introduced a motion in Parliament that called for a ban on pesticides used for cosmetic purposes. Unfortunately, the motion did not pass. However, the NDP will continue to work on this issue. If you’re interested, the following link is the text of my speech in Parliament on that motion:
http://www.ndp.ca/page/3742.


I am also pleased to say that on May 29, Parliament voted 155-121 to pass an NDP motion directing the Prime Minister to bring C-30 forward for debate and a final vote. Yet still he refuses to act. And the clock is ticking. Every day Stephen Harper delays is a wasted opportunity to slow the momentum of catastrophic climate change.

Looking forward, whether it's on climate change, child care, prescription drugs, the high cost of gas and ATM fees, or the war in Afghanistan the federal NDP is working on the issues that everyday Canadians care about. You can find out more about our work at
http://www.ndp.ca
or by subscribing to our e-mail bulletin at subscribe@ndp.ca.

Again, I want to thank you for raising this very important issue with me.

Sincerely,



Jack Layton, MP (Toronto-Danforth)
Leader, Canada's New Democrats
Tweet