Sask. drops Alberta licence plate ban at government work sites

The Saskatchewan government called off its controversial ban on Alberta-plated vehicles at Saskatchewan job sites Monday, ending an escalating interprovincial trade war.

“They’ve done the right thing in the eleventh hour,” said Alberta Trade Minister Deron Bilous.

In December, Saskatchewan announced that Alberta plates would be banned on government work sites. The move spurred Bilous to issue an ultimatum — seven days to take the policy back, or the Alberta government would go to court.

Saskatchewan ignored the deadline, prompting Bilous to inform the New West Partnership trade secretariat of the dispute.

An independent panel was set to review the issue starting at 11:59 p.m. Monday, putting Saskatchewan at risk of $5 million in penalties if found in violation of the trade agreement.

“This is good news for companies on both sides of the border,” Bilous noted, adding the policy was nixed effective immediately.

But his Saskatchewan counterpart said the ban was reversed in a “good faith” move ahead of an upcoming decision on Alberta’s beer prices by the Agreement on Internal Trade (AIT) appeal panel.

Saskatchewan Trade Minister Steven Bonk referred to comments made in a Jan. 15 article by The Canadian Press, which quoted Bilous saying Alberta would make changes to its beer program if the initial ruling decision was upheld.

“We’re very heartened by that,” Bonk told reporters Monday in Regina, adding the comments showed Alberta would respect the spirit of the New West Partnership. “It’s absolutely a victory for Saskatchewan.”

But Bilous said Bonk is trying to save face.

“These two issues are separate,” he said. “Saskatchewan frankly backed down because they know that they’re wrong.”

In a letter sent to Bilous on Monday, Bonk echoed comments from outgoing Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall, who said in December the licence plate ban was due to what he described as a disturbing pattern of protectionist behaviour. He criticized Alberta for hiking the price of beer sold in the province and launching a grant program to help small Alberta brewers.

Saskatchewan officials also gave a few other reasons for the ban. Initially, Highways and Infrastructure Minister Dave Marit said the policy was in retaliation for Saskatchewan contractors being barred from Alberta sites if they didn’t have local plates.

“Our frustration is that Saskatchewan could have picked up the phone to talk to us, but instead decided to move forward with this,” Bilous said.

Both Bilous and Bonk have said they would meet to discuss ongoing trade concerns.

But the location for that Jan. 31 meeting hasn’t been decided, with Bilous opting for Lloydminster and Saskatchewan officials asking for Medicine Hat.

“We’re still waiting for Saskatchewan to commit to Lloydminster,” Bilous said.