The federal government is collaborating with the United States on creating a single-inspection system for goods entering North America.

Safety Minister Vic Toews says, under the new plan, goods entering from any major North American port can receive a single inspection that will satisfy both Canadian and U-S border officials, "Goods arriving in Canada or the United States from outside the North American perimeter will be screened once upon their arrival. They would then be shipped directly to their destination without the need for further inspections, even if it crosses the land border."

Toews delivered a keynote address on changing border security to the Pacific North-west Economic Region summit, which has about 500 delegates in Saskatoon this week.

The organization is hosting a number of roundtable discussions with a focus on solving policy challenges.

Toews explains why streamlining border crossings is such a significant step, "Nearly 1 point 6 billion dollars in commercial transactions cross our border with the US every day. That's 1 million dollars every minute."

He says the federal government is committed to streamlining the transfer of goods across the 49th parallel in order to strengthen the economy.

(pb july 16/12)