VANCOUVER — The U.S. ambassador to Canada says the rules on stricter identification requirements at the Canada-U.S. border could be out as early as next week.

David Wilkins says the U.S. Homeland Security Department is expected soon to spell out the kind of ID required for people crossing the border if they don't have a passport.

Speaking to a Vancouver Board of Trade meeting, Wilkins said the 2004 law requiring a passport or some other form of secure ID starting with air travellers in January is probably the biggest Canada-U.S. irritant now that the softwood lumber dispute was settled over the summer.

But Wilkins says there will be no delays in implementation unless Congress agrees and he says the two governments must work to get ready.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper told influential U.S. business leaders in New York yesterday that they should lobby for a delay in implementing the law because of the potential economic damage it could cause.

Wilkins told his Vancouver audience the Canada-U.S. relationship has grown stronger in the last year and minor irritants should not be magnified into major crises.

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