Premier Susan Holt says the federal government outlined a number of programs to help blunt the impact of U.S. tariffs during a virtual first ministers’ meeting Wednesday.
A universal 25 per cent tariff on Canadian goods going to the U.S. would cost the province 4,000-6,000 jobs, Holt said, but it’s hard to know just how much federal and provincial cash would be needed to respond.
In some cases, because production has moved to the U.S., or “because that hit to demand will just mean that production will have to reduce, shifts will have to reduce and volumes of employees will have to reduce,” she said.
“We don’t have a dollar figure for exactly how much help the federal government needs to give us as we figure out what tariffs are being put in place, if they’re being put in place.”
The federal government is crafting support programs as the country braces for potential U.S. tariffs of 25 per cent. Premier Susan Holt says those programs could include adjustments to employment insurance and credit programs for businesses.
Holt spoke with reporters following Wednesday’s meeting to fine tune retaliatory measures should U.S. President Donald Trump follow through with his threat to impose tariffs on Feb. 1. The federal government is also readying some programs to lessen the blow, should it come.
“The federal government came to the table and presented us with — I think it was five or six different things that they could do … We thought those were positive and interesting but we all want more details,” Holt said.
Details on those options remain sparse, she said, but may include adjustments to employment insurance and credit programs for businesses.
However what any of that looks like depends on what comes out of the Oval Office.
“We’re still operating in the unknown,” she said.
“Right now we still don’t know what sectors, we still don’t know to what extent, we don’t know for how long.”
**ADVANCE FOR SUNDAY, MAY 6** A truck leaves the Horizon Ethanol plant after unloading corn, Wednesday, March
Watchdog groups and lawmakers say Musk's DOGE takeover of the Treasury department could be the largest data breach in US historyTrump administration aides locke
Staff photo /Chris McBride Suhad Hadi, president of the Arab-American Community Center of Youngstown, explain
MISSOULA — Thousands of U.S. Forest Service (USFS) employees are losing their jobs — including 360 workers in Montana.The layoffs are part of a larger push