OTTAWA — Justin Trudeau intends next week to tour regions of the country that are heavily reliant on the steel and aluminum industries in a show of solidarity for those who would be hurt the most by the imposition of stiff U.S. tariffs.
A spokesman says the prime minister is cutting short planned family time during the March break to undertake the tour, which is to begin Monday in Alma, Que., home to one of Rio Tinto's seven aluminum smelters in the province.
On Tuesday, he is to visit Hamilton, where the head of Steeltown's chamber of commerce has predicted the tariffs could put 40,000 jobs in jeopardy, and Sault Ste. Marie, where Algoma Steel is the city's largest employer.
He is to head Wednesday to Regina, where Evraz Steel — which bills itself as the largest steel company in western Canada — has operations.
Prime ministerial spokesman Cameron Ahmad says Trudeau plans to meet with workers, business leaders, industry leaders and union leaders to demonstrate his support for those who may be affected by the tariffs.
Ahmad says Trudeau will be making the point that the Canadian and American industries are deeply integrated and any disruption to that would be costly to business and consumers on both sides of the border.
U.S. President Donald Trump has vowed to impose a 25 per cent tariff on steel imports and a 10 per cent tariff on aluminum imports, with details expected to be unveiled Thursday.
The Trudeau government has been lobbying aggressively for Canada to be excluded from the tariffs, but there have been conflicting signals from the White House about the possibility of any exemptions. Trump himself has said an exemption for Canada and Mexico is possible if negotiations to modernize the North American Free Trade Agreement are concluded to his satisfaction.
Ahmad would not speculate on whether Trudeau's tour will proceed if Canada wins an exemption.
Canada is the biggest supplier of steel imported by the U.S. each year. But Canada is also the biggest foreign buyer of American steel.
The Canadian Steel Producers Association says trade in steel between Canada and the U.S. was worth $12 billion in 2017 and was "evenly balanced" between the two countries.
TRUMP SAYS NEWS ON STEEL, ALUMINUM TARIFFS INDEED COMING LATER TODAY
WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump says his big tariff announcement is coming today, even as his White House wrestles internally over the policy, numerous political allies warn him against it and the rest of the world watches warily.
''Looking forward to 3:30 P.M.(ET) meeting today at the White House,'' Trump tweeted.
"We have to protect & build our steel and aluminum industries while at the same time showing great flexibility and co-operation toward those that are real friends and treat us fairly on both trade and the military."
It's expected Canada and Mexico will get some form of provisional exemption.
The White House indicated Wednesday that the two North American neighbours might get what's being deemed a national-security carve-out — but that it might only be temporary, and would depend on how those countries behave at the NAFTA negotiating table.
There has been an intense 11th-hour debate within the U.S. administration over how to design the policy. Amid the uncertainty, today's event was initially left off Thursday's White House public schedule.
A senior adviser also indicated Wednesday that any relief for Canada could be very short-lived.
In fact, it sounded a bit like a negotiating threat. Peter Navarro said relief from the roughly 25 per cent steel and 10 per cent aluminum tariff would be tied to how those countries respond at the NAFTA table.
One report in the Washington Post said among the plans being discussed is to grant Canada and Mexico relief for just 30 days — then extend it if there's progress in the next round of NAFTA talks.
"Within about 15 to 30 days the tariffs go into effect (for most of the world)," Navarro told Fox Business Channel late Wednesday, adding that steel workers would be present for a presidential proclamation-signing ceremony.
"The proclamation will have a clause that does not impose these tariffs immediately, on Canada and Mexico. It's gonna give us ... the opportunity to negotiate a great deal for this country. And if we get that, then all's good with Canada and Mexico."
On Wednesday, 107 congressional members of Trump's Republican party produced a letter expressing deep concern over the policy and urging him to significantly scale it down. The controversy has produced a rare public backlash against the president from Republicans on Capitol Hill.
Expect a low-key response from Canada if Trump indeed intends to use temporary tariff relief as a bargaining threat. That means no talk of walking away from the table, nor any hint of making concessions under pressure.
"Our position hasn't and won't change," one Canadian source said. "We're after a good deal, not any deal. We'll take no deal rather than a bad one."
