Biz group warns of border crisis
By ALAN FINDLAY
Wed, April 25, 2007




The federal government is taking too reactive a role as the Americans tighten border posts -- costing time, money and privacy for businesses and the public alike, warns a prominent national business group.

Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters president

Perrin Beatty warned the Senate's national security and defence committee yesterday that the rush for a more secure border could make it impossible for Canadian truckers to even cross the border, and turn off tourists.

Crossings could soon become clogged with a confusion of new ID cards, driver's licences and passport requirements piling up under various U.S. federal laws, said Beatty.

"Without agreed-upon standards, we will see scores of stand-alone systems, each requiring personal data and fees to obtain a card," Beatty told the committee.


'ENORMOUS' COSTS

"The threat to personal privacy, the cost and the inconvenience will be enormous."

The most prominent issue is the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, which requires a passport or passport-like card for Canadians and even Americans to cross into the U.S.

That initiative alone, already in place for air travellers and kicking in for land crossings and sea ports by June 2009, is expected to deter Americans from organizing conventions and planning family trips in Canada.

Another initiative, called the Real ID Act, would require states to adopt hi-tech security measures for their driver's licences as well, costing states $14.6 billion over 10 years, Beatty said.

The manufacturers' group is calling on the government to appoint a lead agency to oversee the implementation of secure IDs and push the U.S. to negotiate common security requirements.

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