The Prime Minister of Quebec, François Legault, said on Monday that he expected Ottawa to pay financial compensation to the provinces which will contribute to the tariff response against the United States, if it does indeed take place.
“If Quebec makes efforts on electricity, if we make more efforts than other provinces, it is important that the bill is shared equitably. We asked for help from the federal government,” declared Mr. Legault at the opening of the caucus of the Coalition Avenir Québec, whose elected officials are meeting in Saint-Sauveur to prepare for the next parliamentary session.
In his inaugural speech on Monday in Washington, the 47e President of the United States, Donald Trump, did not repeat his threat to decree tariffs of 25% on all goods imported from Canada, only to, a few hours later, say that he intended to impose them on 1is FEBRUARY. If Mr. Trump “decides to hurt us, we must respond with the best cards we have,” Mr. Legault repeated in the middle of the day.
During a meeting of the premiers last week, the Premier of Quebec did not rule out the possibility of cutting off Quebec hydroelectricity from the Americans. The Premier of Alberta, Danielle Smith, stood aside by refusing to approve the joint declaration by Canada and the Council of the Federation, saying she feared a response that would include customs tariffs on oil.
“A certain equalization”
In the opinion of François Legault, Mme Smith should join the common front of the provinces. “Ideally, yes,” he said. He claimed to have intervened with his provincial counterparts and the Canadian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, so that a province like Alberta receives compensation commensurate with its contribution to the collective response effort. “The idea is to make Canada win, not to make a province pay more. There has to be some fairness. To make M laughme Smith, I would even say a certain equalization,” said Mr. Legault.
Prime Minister Trudeau has shown himself open to such an avenue, saying last week that he intends to be “fair.”
-As he did in December, François Legault compared “the Trump crisis” to that of the COVID-19 pandemic. “When businesses and citizens get hit, it’s the government’s role to help them. This is how we will look at the situation,” he declared. He said he was determined to “protect Quebecers” despite Quebec’s financial situation, struggling with a deficit of $11 billion.
Fear of a second Roxham
Mr. Legault affirmed that teams from the Ministry of the Economy were hard at work studying the best measures to put in place as retaliation, “sector by sector”, “product by product”.
Behind-the-scenes work, particularly with American business leaders, also continues. “If Mr. Trump imposes import tariffs, we can also impose import tariffs, but it could also be export tariffs, for example in the energy sector,” a- he said.
The American president’s decision to declare a state of emergency at the border between the United States and Mexico – with the aim of returning “millions and millions of foreign criminals”, according to the latter – also fuels the concerns of François Legault.
An influx at the northern border “is not something we exclude,” said the Prime Minister. “We must indeed not end up with a new Roxham and have asylum seekers arriving in Quebec. So, we are following that,” he assured, referring to the path taken by thousands of asylum seekers every month until 2023.
