Finance minister ‘very pessimistic’ Trump tariffs can be avoided by Tuesday

Finance Minister Dominic Leblanc says the government has the instruments to support Canadian workers and businesses.

With U.S. President Donald Trump’s 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods set to come into effect on Tuesday, Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc says he believes it’s unlikely Canada can escape them ahead of that date.

“I’m very pessimistic that by Tuesday we can get out,” LeBlanc said in an interview with CTV’s Question Period airing Sunday. “My conversations with (U.S. Commerce Secretary nominee) Howard Lutnick and others in the administration tell me that perhaps in March there’s a window again, but most of this is so unpredictable.”

On Saturday, Trump made good on his threat to hit Canada with massive tariffs, signing an executive order. Starting Tuesday, there will be 25 per cent tariffs on all Canadian imports, except for Canadian energy, which will see a 10 per cent tariff applied.

In retaliation, Canada is slapping 25 per cent tariffs of its own on $155 billion worth of American goods. Canada’s countermeasures will include immediate tariffs on $30 billion worth of goods as of Tuesday, followed by further tariffs on $125 billion worth of American products in 21 days’ time, to allow Canadian companies and supply chains to find alternatives.

The Canadian government has released a comprehensive list of everyday American goods that will be tariffed, including meats, cheeses, beer, wine and kitchenware.

According to the White House, Trump is imposing the tariffs to address a national “emergency situation,” and “public health crisis.”

“President Trump is taking bold action to hold Mexico, Canada, and China accountable to their promises of halting illegal immigration and stopping poisonous fentanyl and other drugs from flowing into our country,” reads a fact sheet from the Trump administration.

Less than one per cent of fentanyl seized by authorities in the United States comes from Canada, with U.S. Customs and Border Protection seizing just 43 pounds of fentanyl at the northern border in the 2024 fiscal year.

Federal officials in Canada have also repeatedly emphasized these and similar statistics, while initiating rounds of lobbying efforts with D.C. officials about Canada’s new $1.3-billion border security plan.

Asked by Question Period host Vassy Kapelos whether tariffs as a revenue source is Trump’s true motivation — as opposed to border concerns — LeBlanc said: “I’ve wondered that, too.”

“There is a policy thought in many in his administration, that (tariffs are) a good economic policy and industrial policy for the United States,” LeBlanc said. “I don’t know. I don’t think it’s up to us to imagine what is moving Mr. Trump to make these decisions. Our job is to stand up for the Canadian economy.”

In recent weeks, Trump has often spoke about the utility of tariffs to bring in revenue, describing the word “tariff” as the “most beautiful word in the dictionary.” Trump has also dismissed concerns about the negative economic impacts tariffs could have on U.S. consumers.

“Tariffs don’t cause inflation,” Trump said Friday from the Oval Office. “They cause success, cause big success. We’re going to have great success. There could be some temporary, short-term disruption, and people will understand that.”

Speaking to Kapelos, LeBlanc said “there’s a lot of evidence” of the disruptive impacts of tariffs, adding: “How long does it take for the Trump administration to come to that conclusion, who knows?”

LeBlanc also said he has had discussions with Lutnick about the possibility of lifting the tariffs in March, but added “like much of this, it’s rather unpredictable.”

“In my conversations with Mr. Lutnick, they were very cordial. He has been quite open with me. He’s obviously waiting until his confirmation hearing,” LeBlanc said. “He said to me that he would be happy to have me as his first meeting at nine o’clock the morning after his confirmation hearing.”

According to the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, a 25 per cent tariff could shrink Canada’s GDP by 2.6 per cent and cost Canadian households an average of $1,900 annually. South of the border, it would result in a 1.6 per cent GDP drop and an average $1,300 hit to American households.

In addition, Trump is continuing to push his view that a “US$200-billion” trade deficit between Canada and the U.S. is a reason for implementing tariffs.

In a new post to Truth Social on Sunday morning, Trump reiterated his desire for Canada to “become our Cherished 51st State” and wrote: “The USA has major deficits with Canada, Mexico and China (and almost all countries!), owes 36 Trillion Dollars, and we’re not going to be the ‘Stupid Country’ any longer.”

The U.S. president has indicated he is ready to escalate the levies further if Canada retaliates.

But LeBlanc told Kapelos that the federal government has not received any official word so far from the White House of potential escalation, saying “we’ve accepted that unpredictability in this context will be the normal.”

Should Parliament be recalled?

Parliament is currently prorogued until March 24, and both Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh are urging the Liberal government to bring the House of Commons back in session to address the crisis.

While Canada can enact counter tariffs through policy measures that don’t require legislative approval, sources have told CTV News that the federal government is also planning a potentially pandemic-sized stimulus package to help businesses and workers. That relief would likely require parliamentary sign-off as it would involve new spending measures.

Asked directly by Kapelos whether Parliament needs to be in session to move ahead with any supports, LeBlanc insisted that “the government has the instruments necessary to support workers and Canadian businesses in the current context.”

“The provinces will also step up,” LeBlanc said. “I was with the prime minister, his conversation with all the premiers yesterday. Every one of them talked about the importance of working together to support businesses and workers.”

When asked again if parliamentarians should be debating the tariff response and what message not doing so sends to the U.S., LeBlanc insisted “we’ll make all the decisions necessary to support workers and businesses.”

“If that circumstance you described turns out to be the case, obviously we would do what is necessary,” he also said.

LeBlanc also accused the opposition of contradicting arguments.

“The opposition parties have vowed at the first opportunity to cause an election,” he said. “That’s a guaranteed way to make sure that Parliament doesn’t meet for two or three more months. So they can’t have it both ways.”

With files from CTV News’ Rachel Aiello