Campobello Island, N.B., granted special tariff exemption

2,400 New Brunswick workers could lose their jobs if the current tariff levels remain unchanged.

Premier Susan Holt says the New Brunswick government is pleased residents of Campobello Island have received a special tariff exemption amid the ongoing trade war with the United States and Canada.

Holt delivered an update on the tariff situation in the province on Thursday and noted the federal government’s decision Wednesday to grant special exemption from tariff countermeasures on U.S. consumer and household products for Campobello Island residents.

The island, which has a population of fewer than 1,000 people, is connected to Lubec, Maine, via a bridge. Many residents regularly travel across the border for essentials like food.

The New Brunswick government has long urged the federal government to implement a tariff exemption for Campobello Island residents.

Lumber concerns

Holt said New Brunswick’s current retaliatory tariffs and support programs will remain in place as the trade war grinds on. She noted the duties on Canadian lumber – which were at 14.4 per cent prior to the current tariff dispute – are particularly impactful for the New Brunswick forestry industry.

“We don’t believe those tariffs are fair or appropriate and we want them removed from our softwood lumber industry,” Holt said. “We haven’t stopped doing the work of trying to achieve that objective even if the audience in Washington has been pretty distracted from that conversation.”

The New Brunswick government estimates tariffs could cause 2,100 job losses in the province this year.

Trade barriers update

Holt, who has been advocating for a free trade zone in Atlantic Canada amid this trade war, said her government is working to remove internal trade barriers and expects to have an update on them by July.

“We’re working towards a Canada Day deadline to bring down as many internal trade barriers as we can,” she said.

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