OTTAWA – Seventy Conservative Parliamentarians ( including Prince George - Peace River MP Jay Hill ) made history on Canada Day by filing an amicus brief in Billings, Montana defending Canada’s livestock industry in the R-CALF vs. USDA court case that has kept the US border closed to Canadian cattle through a temporary injunction. The amicus brief was filed in the Federal District Court in Billings on July 1 for the upcoming July 27 hearing. With their amicus brief, the Conservative Parliamentarians are the lone representatives of Canada’s legislatures in the R-CALF vs. USDA court case in Billings.

The Conservative brief was filed after the June 24 announcement of a case of BSE that was discovered in a Texas beef cow. The brief will thus provide for the court the first mention of the recently acknowledged case of BSE. This is highly significant as arguments used by R-CALF to secure the current temporary injunction blocking imports of Canadian cattle portrayed Canada’s cattle herd as a BSE threat and the US herd as being BSE-free.

The Conservative brief also delivers strong arguments against the R-CALF led injunction by outlining the United States’ obligation to treat its trade partners with fairness as outlined by the World Trade Organization, the North American Free Trade Agreement, and the World Organization for Animal Health.

In an unprecedented step, on June 17, 2005, sixty-four Conservative Members of Parliament and six Conservative Senators were granted amicus standing by the same judge who earlier refused a similar application by the federal Liberal government. This marked the first time that a group of Canadian Parliamentarians has been granted such standing in a foreign court.

Rick Casson, MP for Lethbridge, stated: “Our work to defend Canada’s livestock industry is continuing and as de facto representatives of the Canadian government in this case, we will continue to work in concert with our solicitor, Barry Appleton, to provide a strong voice for Canada’s livestock industry in the Billings court.”

The Conservative Parliamentarians’ amicus brief can be obtained online at http://www.appletonlaw.com .

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For more information, please contact:
Jay Hill, M.P. (613) 947-4524 or (250) 787-119