As federal leaders negotiate with American counterparts to remove 50 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods, New Brunswick Premier Susan Holt isn’t voicing her opinion — yet. “I look forward to having ink on paper of a trade agreement that reflects the value of New Brunswick products and businesses. We are expecting to see tariff reductions, and once the details have been finalized and shared, we will weigh in on the deal for New Brunswick,” she said in a statement Thursday. But not all of her cabinet members are staying quiet. Opportunities New Brunswick Minister Luke Randall said the province is willing to work with the federal government to get a deal. But if that includes putting U.S. liquor back on New Brunswick shelves, he wants more details. “We’ll be looking to see what the ask looks like, and we’ll be looking forward to working with our federal partners to get to a successful resolution,” he said. Even still, he is confident about the Canadian negotiation team. “Our premier has been in constant contact with the federal government, and so that partnership is strong,” he said. And he knows it’s having an impact on New Brunswick businesses. “The sooner we can get a resolution to give some certainty to businesses, the better off we’ll be in this province and in this country,” he said. The tariffs hit close to home for workers in the lumber sector. Rick Doucett, president of the New Brunswick Federation of Woodlot owners, said they’re already seeing job losses for people cutting and transporting wood. “When the mills are hit with these extra expenses, they often pass that expense, or a portion of that expense, onto the wood producer in the form of lower prices. And the margins for making money, cutting wood and trucking wood in New Brunswick are already very slim,” he said. In the last 20 years, he said the revenue generated by private woodlot owners has dropped by 50 per cent. Last year the U.S. government hiked up tariffs and duties on Canadian softwood lumber, and the threatened 50 per cent tariffs would be another blow to the sector. Doucett is hoping any deal will remove both the threatened tariffs and the tariff increases introduced last year. “We would love to get back to at least our position prior to 2025,” he said. Business representatives around the province are awaiting news of the deal. “Some short-term sustainability is certainly welcome. At the same time, I think we’ve learned the lesson that we also have to keep at getting our own economic house in order,” said Morgan Peters, CEO of the Fredericton Chamber of Commerce. He said that includes diversifying business markets and reducing interprovincial trade barriers. But even with a deal, he sees the Canada-U.S. trade relationship as forever changed. “I don’t think things will ever get back to normal, or what they were before. But that’s going to be part of any long-term thing is kind of normalizing trade relations,” he said. For more New Brunswick news, visit our dedicated provincial page.
