KELLY PATTERSON, CanWest News Service, 18 August 2007
Wide-ranging proposals for the two-year-old North American Security and Prosperity Partnership would more closely bind Canada, the United States and Mexico – and have sparked controversy and suspicion from those outside the process. Their concerns will be at the heart of much of the discussion at the Three Amigos summit at Montebello on Monday and Tuesday.
Charges of secrecy
The only outsiders with a formal role in the SPP are mega-corporations through the North American Competitiveness Council (NACC), which brings together 30 business representatives from the three countries to help direct the accord.
Created in 2006, the NACC includes giants such as Wal-Mart, Home Depot and Lockheed-Martin, all of which have an interest in seeing regulations slashed, the Council of Canadians’ Maude Barlow says.