The NDP has accused the federal Industry Minister Tony Clement of perfecting "the practice of double standards" surrounding the strike by the 3,000 members of United Steelworkers Local 6500 at Vale Inco's Sudbury operations.
The NDP has accused the federal Industry Minister Tony Clement of perfecting "the practice of double standards" surrounding the strike by the 3,000 members of United Steelworkers Local 6500 at Vale Inco's Sudbury operations.
When called upon in the legislature by NDP leader Jack Layton to intervene in the eight-month dispute, Clement responded on March 22 that "in terms of dealing with the strike and intervening in the strike, that is a provincial responsibility."
In a release, the NDP point to the government's approval of the purchase of Inco by the Brazilian firm, while also citing lobbyist communication records indicating Clement or his staff have repeatedly met with Vale Inco executives. According to the NDP, the records show 13 such meetings since July 16, 2008, with the most recent one taking place on Feb. 26, 2010.
"The Industry minister must explain why, on the one hand, he says this is a provincial issue, but on the other hand, he has no problem meeting with company representatives," said NDP mines critic and Nickel Belt MP Claude Gravelle in the release. "We'd like to know what was discussed at these 13 meetings."
This follows continued calls from the federal NDP for the Conservatives to publicly release Vale's takeover agreement so as to hold the company to account for its commitments to provide a net benefit to Canada.
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