VICTORIA, B.C.: Trade talks with the U.S. have collapsed, and British Columbians deserve a clear plan to deal with the economic fallout.
Just days after insisting a trade deal was within reach, the federal government announced it was suspending negotiations with the U.S. On Wednesday, Mark Carney was urging premiers to lift bans on American alcohol in anticipation of an agreement. By Friday, those talks were dead, and the prospect of escalating tariffs was once again threatening jobs, businesses, and the economy. Through it all, Canadians were left in the dark about what was actually on the table.
“British Columbians will be most heavily impacted by the tariffs. We deserve to know what options were on the table,” said Gavin Dew, Shadow Minister for Finance. “Stacked on top of 9 years of NDP mismanagement, we are facing an immediate economic crisis. It’s time to act. MLAs should return immediately from the Legislature’s summer break. We must re-industrialize our forestry, mining, and energy sectors to restore the prosperity that pays for services and makes our way of life possible.”
“British Columbians deserve to know exactly what deal led to this breakdown,” said Lawrence Mok, Shadow Minister for Trade. “The resulting tariffs are going to cause tremendous economic pain. With jobs, businesses, and affordability hanging in the balance, Canadians shouldn’t have to rely on speculation to understand what happened.”
“The breakdown in trade talks is a serious setback with potentially far-reaching consequences for workers, businesses, and communities across B.C. and Canada,” said Hon. Kerry-Lynne Findlay, Leader of the Conservative Party of B.C. “This is so integral to our future prosperity the Premier should recall the Legislature so that elected officials can weigh in on this and develop proposals to protect our economy. A stronger Western Alliance can harness our resources, energy, innovation, and entrepreneurship to help drive Canada’s recovery. The B.C. Conservatives are ready to get to work.”
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