“Canada also faces uncertainty over an agreement on softwood lumber with the United States.” That would be the agreement that the Conservative government negotiated with the US in April 2006, less than three months after they took office. Freeland has been International Trade Minister since November 2015 so why has she been unable to negotiate a new agreement? It expired in October 2015, so it has been on her plate, or should have been, from the moment she took office. Given the imbecilic way the Liberal government poked Trump in the eye during the election campaign, 2017 is not likely to see a new softwood lumber agreement, but is likely to see harsh countervailing duties levied against our softwood lumber exports.