Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is calling for Canada to respond to incoming U.S. tariffs by increasing trade between provinces and cutting taxes to stimulate growth.
Speaking to reporters in Ottawa on Feb. 2, Poilievre said Canada must “bring home production and self-reliance,” and that the country is vulnerable because it sells twice as much to the United States as it does domestically.
“These interprovincial barriers are destructive. They kill jobs, they drive up consumer prices, and they cost the average family $6,000 a year. Let’s knock them down, and let’s be a truly free-trading economy ourselves,” he said.
U.S. President Donald Trump has said 25 percent tariffs will be levied on goods from Canada beginning on Feb. 4, while oil and gas exports will be taxed at 10 percent. The Liberal government responded on Feb. 1 by announcing $155 billion in retaliatory tariffs, with an initial $30 billion being imposed on Feb. 4 when the U.S. tariffs will come into force….