New Brunswick’s natural resources minister says the province’s historic exemption from U.S. softwood lumber duties may be gone forever, and it’s time for a single, unified national lobbying focus to secure a new deal with the Americans.

John Herron told CBC News that while the province continues to disagree with U.S. industry claims that its wood is unfairly subsidized, he did not want to take a position that might heighten disagreements with other provinces.

“I don’t think this is the time for us to get into too much nuance,” Herron said.

“We have a common national type of perspective, and that’s one we would all lean in on.”

To that end, Herron is endorsing the idea of accepting a cap or quota on how much Canadian U.S. softwood can enter the U.S. market, in return for those exports b

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