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House Hansard - 150

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
January 31, 2023 10:00AM
Context: House Hansard - 150 - Jan/31/23
Mr. Jeremy Patzer (Cypress Hills—Grasslands, CPC)
  • Jan/31/23 2:05:30 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, over two years ago, the federal government closed all Canadian border crossings. As COVID restrictions eased, the border began to reopen, but only with limited capacity. As people in Saskatchewan watched the big crossings in Windsor, Coutts and Douglas fully open, they thought it was only a matter of time before their crossing would resume normal hours of operation, but they are still waiting. The most direct route from Denver, Colorado to Canada is through the Port of Monchy south of Val Marie, Saskatchewan. Denver is a key hub of the United States, with market access to all directions. Ranchers, farmers, exporters and tourism operators in Canada use ports like Monchy to access U.S. markets, while fresh produce from California and Florida is imported back through this vital port. However, Monchy and other nearby crossings in Saskatchewan are closed on the weekends and only open for limited hours during the week. One needs to drive over halfway across the province just to find weekend hours. Rural Saskatchewan is once again being punished and forgotten by this government. This leads me to ask, is it negligence or is it just incompetence?
193 words
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