Canada is now planning to offer pandemic-level financial support to their workers and businesses. Official emphasizes the workers that should not bear the cost of the US decision an references past COVID-19 responses in the model of potential aid.
Ottawa also has announced that it will offer pandemic-level financial assistance to all Canadian workers and businesses. US President Donald Trump follows through with the threats of imposing heavy tariffs.
Trump clearly indicated that he would implement 25% tariffs on any imports from Canada and Mexico from February 1.
Unless further measures are taken to curb migrant and drug crossings into the United States. Given that approximately 20 percent of the Canadian economy and nearly two million workers rely on exports to the US, these tariffs would have a significant impact.
Labor Minister Steven MacKinnon told
“Canada will be there to support and protect workers whatever irrational decision is made south of the border,”.
He also added
“Workers will not pay the price for or bear the brunt of a tariff decision made by the US administration,”.
At his side, MP Randy Boissonnault jumped in to tell reporters to look to Canada’s Covid-19 pandemic response to get a sense of the scale of the proposed bailout, which Canadian media have said could rise to billions of dollars.
“If you want to know what we can do and will do… take a look at (the government’s) Covid playbook. Take a look at how we supported people during Covid,” Boissonnault said.
Canada allocated Can$280 billion in 2022 for pandemic relief, surpassing Can$1 trillion. Foreign Minister Joly met with US counterpart Marco Rubio to avoid tariffs. Public Safety Minister McGuinty presented a Can$1.3 billion plan to strengthen border security.
At a news conference in Ottawa, McGuinty said this represented the “largest single investment in Canadian history on the Canadian border.”
The speaker highlighted that daily, 400,000 people and billions of dollars cross the border, yet less than 1% of illegal migrants and fentanyl enter the US from Canada.
McGuinty said he “remains hopeful” for a breakthrough in talks to avoid sanctions, adding on border cooperation: “We’ve been doing it for 150 years together. I don’t see why we can’t do it now.”
