HALIFAX, NS - The new Canada-US border deal will help increase the efficiency of cross border trade, according to the Halifax Gateway Council.
Joyce Carter, Chair of the Halifax Gateway Council said "The private sector's main concern is the need to streamline rules and regulations for companies that either ship product or facilitate passenger travel across the border. To be competitive, efficient and on time, the rules need to be consistent. This agreement will certainly increase the efficiency at the borders."
Canada and the United States have agreed to implement Beyond the Border, which is aimed at improving the movement of goods, services and people across the Canadian-U.S. border. The agreement was announced by Prime Minister Harper and U.S. President Barack Obama at a ceremony in Washington this week.
Beyond the Border will advance the sharing of intelligence and increase efficiency of cross-border trade. The deal is a collection of 29 agreements, and is intended to streamline trade while making our mutual border more secure by pushing security to entry points at the edges of the continent, like Halifax.
In March 2011, The Halifax Gateway Council partnered with the Atlantic Chapter of the American Chamber of Commerce in Canada to host a roundtable session with representatives of the U.S. and Canadian Governments along with private sector exporters and transportation providers. Joyce Carter said, "Our gateway roundtable provided an opportunity for our companies to provide input into this agreement during its formation and to see it come to fruition this year represents a significant step forward in the ease of cross-border business and travel".
This is an important advancement for both Halifax and the entire Atlantic Canadian region due to the historical and continued strong trade and travel ties North/South. The U.S. is Nova Scotia's number one trading partner and cross border travel constitutes a significant percent of our business and tourism visitors.
The Gateway is comprised of the Halifax Stanfield International Airport, the International Port of Halifax, two super post-panamax container terminals, CN Rail, a strong logistics and warehousing sector and excellent highway infrastructure. The Halifax Gateway is managed by the Greater Halifax Partnership.