Saskatchewan deputy premier says constant changing U.S. tariff decisions ‘ridiculous’

Saskatchewan Finance Minister Jim Reiter gestures while speaking during a press conference in Regina, on November 28, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Heywood Yu

Saskatchewan’s deputy premier says the constantly shifting announcements from the United States on tariffs are “ridiculous” and raise concerns that the turmoil is now the new normal.

Jim Reiter told reporters Friday that cooler heads need to prevail amid a turbulent trade war between Canada and its southern neighbour.

“Things change by the day, they change by the hour and they change by the minute. I hope this isn’t the new norm, but it might be,” Reiter said.

He added that nobody comes out as the winner in a trade war.

“This is ridiculous,” he said. “We need to get back to some semblance of normalcy.”

U.S. President Donald Trump introduced 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods this week but then paused some until April 2.

It’s the latest in a long-running string of evolving announcements and rollbacks from Trump as he seeks what he calls trade fairness and more action from Canada on fighting drug smuggling.

The temporary relief applies to goods that meet the rules-of-origin requirements under the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement. It also includes lowering levies on potash to 10 per cent.

Ottawa has responded by suspending a second wave of retaliatory tariffs, which were to take effect in three weeks. It’s also unveiled a $6-billion aid package to support businesses through the trade war.

Reiter said reducing the levy on potash to 10 per cent still hurts.

He said there are no plans to slap export taxes on the sale of potash to the United States as a measure to hit back. Saskatchewan also won’t stop the shipment of the agricultural product used for fertilizers.

“You try to do something to hurt your neighbour and you end up putting your own folks out of work,” Reiter said.

“You also hurt your own revenues, so we want to be extremely cautious.”

At an unrelated news conference Friday, Opposition NDP jobs critic Aleana Young told reporters that Trump’s changing announcements point to a need for a unified response from Canadian leaders.

“It’s important that we continue to look to the future, we not take our foot off the gas and we stay united,” Young said.

To counter the tariffs, Premier Scott Moe’s Saskatchewan Party government has said it will stop buying U.S. alcohol and work to stop procuring American suppliers for government projects.

The province says liquor retailers won’t be able to buy U.S. alcohol but can sell their remaining inventory.

Meanwhile, Reiter has written to Ottawa over the possibility of Ukrainians living in the United States being forced to leave. Trump has said he may decide to revoke the temporary legal status of 240,000 Ukrainian refugees living in the country.

In the letter, Reiter said the federal government should consider reopening applications for Ukrainian emergency travel visas, even if it’s only for those leaving the United States.

• Click here for more coverage on the ongoing Canada, U.S. trade war

-This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 7, 2025.