Softwood clause could scrap 'long-term' deal by next year

OTTAWA - U.S. negotiators in round-the-clock softwood lumber talks are seeking an opt-out clause that could see the long-standing dispute back on the table in little more than a year, CanWest News Service has learned.

Negotiators in Washington have been attempting to reach a deal before Prime Minister Stephen Harper and U.S. President George W. Bush meet in the U.S. capital next week.

Harper told the House of Commons on April 27 that he had secured a ''long-term solution'' a seven-year deal with the option to extend for two more years to the decades-long trade dispute between Canada and the United States. The agreement in principle states that Canadian lumber companies will get back $4 billion of the $5 billion that has been paid to Washington in import duties to send lumber into lucrative U.S. markets.

But a controversial ''termination clause'' which was introduced by the Americans in negotiations in the last week is becoming a source of much consternation north of the border. The clause would allow either side to opt out of the agreement after one year so long as it give 30-days notice, meaning a possible return to lawsuits, import duties and political wrangling.

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