British Columbians should rethink their vacations to the United States in light of Donald Trump’s tariff threat, Premier David Eby said Tuesday.┬а
The U.S. president said Monday that 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods could take effect as soon as Feb. 1, which Eby called a┬а“deliberate economic attack” on B.C. families.┬а
“We should really be thinking carefully about spending our money in that country,” he said. “We will not spend money in a country that wants to do economic harm to Canadians.”
Eby┬аstood by his support for retaliatory tariffs on U.S. imports, such as Florida orange juice. He┬аdid not rule out other measures, such as banning the sale of U.S. wine and liquor in B.C. stores, charging U.S. trucks to drive through Canada to get to Alaska or banning American companies from bidding on B.C. infrastructure projects.
B.C. Conservative leader┬аsays stance┬аwill only hurt workers
John Rustad wrote on social media that Eby is “focused on framing Trump as a political enemy.”
He said Eby’s┬аNDP┬аonly cares “about playing partisan politics for their own gain, not about standing up for workers тАФ that’s why they’re not trying to de-escalate and help British Columbians avoid tariffs, economic hardship, and chaos.”
With U.S. President Donald Trump seemingly holding off on imposing 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith spoke to The NationalтАЩs Adrienne Arsenault about how tariffs could be avoided in the future and AmericaтАЩs reliance on Alberta oil.
Eby┬аsays communicating┬аthe economic toll┬аthat tariffs will take on Americans in terms of higher prices is the only way to stave off the threat.┬а
The premier also announced┬аa new┬аtask force on trade and economic security, which includes representatives from the business, Indigenous and labour communities to co-ordinate a┬аprovincial response to the tariff threat.
It will be co-chaired by Bridgitte Anderson, who heads┬аthe Greater Vancouver Board of Trade,┬аJonathan Price, CEO of Teck Resources┬аand Tamara Vrooman, CEO of the Vancouver International Airport.┬а
- How might tariffs from the United States change your day-to-day life as a consumer? If the change will affect the way you spend or travel, let us know by emailing┬аask@cbc.ca.
Eby┬аstressed┬аthere will┬аbe First Nations representation on the task force.
This follows criticism from Chief Cheryl Casimer, who heads the First Nations Summit, that First Nations voices have so far been left out of the discussions on Canada’s tariff response.┬а
“We have not yet been approached to be participants in any discussion relating to tariffs,” Casimer said.┬а“We haven’t been invited to be part of Team Canada yet.”
Casimer, Grand Chief Stewart Phillip of the┬аUnion of B.C. Indian Chiefs and┬аChief Terry Teegee┬аof the┬аB.C.┬аAssembly of First Nations spoke alongside Eby Tuesday morning ahead of the NDP cabinet’s two-day meeting with First Nations leaders in Vancouver.┬а
Teegee warned that tariffs threaten the stability of┬аnatural resources sectors that many First Nations communities rely on, including forestry, mining and natural gas.┬а
“A lot of the industry that we’re a part of is resource-based… and [tariffs] would definitely cause a downturn,” Teegee said. “This is why we should be a part of these discussions.”
