Quebec premier joins calls for U.S. government to abandon border passport [View All]

[CHIMO]

Quebec premier joins calls for U.S. government to abandon border passport plan

WASHINGTON (CP) - Quebec Premier Jean Charest joined several top U.S. politicians Wednesday in urging the federal government to abandon its plan to require passports for crossing the border with Canada.

"It would be a further impediment to travel and trade," said Charest, who was meeting with New York Gov. George Pataki Wednesday at the third annual Quebec New York Economic Summit held in Albany.

"If you're talking about a family with three kids, whatever the idea is, you're going to need to have something that is affordable and passports are not affordable for many of the people that live along the border," said Clinton, a Democrat, in Washington.

A U.S. passport costs $97, and officials say they are working to come up with a cheaper, more widely used alternate document for U.S. citizens. A driver's licence and a birth certificate are used by most who cross the Canadian border now.

http://www.macleans.ca/topstories/politics/news/shownews.jsp?content=n100531A