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Prime Minister Mark Carney speaks alongside Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc and chief trade negotiator Janice Charette on Saturday as Canada vowed to retaliate against U.S. tariffs.PATRICK DOYLE/The Canadian Press
Prime Minister Mark Carney said his team walked away from trade negotiations Friday after the American side made unacceptable requests that would have infringed on Canadian sovereignty.
Speaking with reporters Saturday morning on Parliament Hill, Mr. Carney offered several examples of U.S. demands that Canada could not accept, including the fine print related to potential agreements on steel, aluminum and autos, and language that he said would have restricted Canada’s trade negotiations with other countries.
“There were some things we wouldn’t do. We were not prepared to compromise Canada’s sovereignty or to undermine key industries,” he said. “In short, they asked too much, and they offered too little.”
Having failed to complete a deal by the midnight deadline, the U.S. said it was going ahead with new 50-per-cent tariffs on US$20-billion worth of goods.
The Prime Minister said Friday night that Canada would “match those tariffs dollar for dollar to protect our workers and businesses.”
On Saturday, he said Canada would soon reveal those retaliatory measures, which will take effect Sept. 8.
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Mr. Carney was asked about the tone of his remarks, which suggested that Canada was at war.
“You are at war when you get attacked. We got attacked,” he said. “That’s fine. We’ve got the reserves. We’ve got resilience. We’ve got the plan. We’ve got the focus. We’ll respond – we are going to focus on what we can control. We are going to build.”
The Prime Minister spoke with the media after negotiations between Canada and the United States fell apart late Friday night, leading to billions of dollars in new tariffs on both sides of the border.
Mr. Carney is scheduled to meet with his cabinet early Saturday afternoon. He will then chair a First Ministers’ Meeting to discuss plans with provincial and territorial premiers.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who had avoided public comments on the talks in recent days, said Saturday that the Prime Minister was right to walk away from a bad deal with U.S. President Donald Trump.
“I’m glad he didn’t sign that deal because it was a bad deal,” he said, adding that the U.S. President can’t be trusted. “President Trump is a type of person that would steal your lunch money the first day. He’d steal the toque off your head the second day and the third day he’d steal your running shoes. His not to be trusted whatsoever.”
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Quebec Premier Christine Fréchette said federal negotiators were right to walk away from a U.S. proposal that would have crossed some of her province’s “red lines,” including removing bilingual labelling regulations and weakening policies that support French culture.
She said language issues should not be up for negotiation.
“Our culture, our language, is central to our identify,” she said.
Speaking at a news conference with provincial ministers, Ms. Fréchette said the province is preparing support programs for businesses affected by U.S. tariffs and encouraged Ottawa to offer similar measures.
The premier said it isn’t clear whether trade talks between Canada and the U.S. will resume.
Just minutes before the midnight deadline on Friday, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer announced that Canada had declined to finalize the trade deal under terms he said were agreed to earlier in the week.
Mr. Carney issued a statement shortly after, blaming the American said for introducing “last-minute changes” that were unfair and called into question the reliability of any deal.
Neither side offered specifics Friday night as to what exactly led the talks to fall apart.
Opposition parties expressed support Saturday for the Prime Minister’s decision to walk away from the negotiations.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre released a statement Saturday morning expressing disappointment that the U.S. has chosen to impose further tariffs on Canada.
“Canadians must stand united to defend our country against these unfair attacks on our jobs and businesses. Canada cannot accept one-sided tariffs that will deindustrialize our country. Nor can we accept a bad deal. Instead, we must continue the fight for tariff-free trade,” he said, adding that he will be seeking a call with Mr. Carney.
“Conservatives support action to protect Canadians and our industries targeted by these unfair U.S. tariffs,” he said. “All Canadians must stand united for our workers, our businesses and our country.”
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Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet expressed support for Mr. Carney’s plan to impose countertariffs. He also said in a statement that the federal government should provide support for affected businesses and workers.
NDP Leader Avi Lewis said the Prime Minister was right to walk away from the negotiating table.
“I believe Canadians are united in this crucial moment, on this crucial point: no deal is better than a bad deal,” he said in a statement. “Accepting a deal that would lock in pointless, destructive tariffs and undermine our ability to regulate big tech would have been disastrous for our workers, industries and sovereignty. PM Carney read the room by rejecting the Americans’ offer.”