N.L. to 'reevaluate' decision to pull American liquor following 30 day delay in tariffs
Prime Minister Trudeau says Trump has agreed to delay tariffs while countries work together on fentanyl
Premier Andrew Furey says everyone is breathing a sigh of relief following news that U.S. tariffs on Canadian goods will be delayed by at least a month.
"I'm relieved, but cautious," Furey told CBC News Monday evening.
"We also know, by the way, that the president is irrational and occasionally chaotic. So I mean, what he says today may not be what he means tomorrow."
His comments came after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said U.S. President Donald Trump will hold off on levying tariffs against Canada for at least 30 days after Canada made a series of commitments to improve security along the Canada-U.S. border.
Furey said he's taken exception to Trump's narrative — that Canada is a problem country with respect to drugs and illegal movement across the border.
"That's definitively not true. And we need to, as Canadians, own our own narrative on that. There are far more drugs coming from the United States into Canada than they're are the other way around," he said.
"But, I do see a space in which there is a shared space of responsibility to remove fentanyl and other drugs and illegal firerms, for that matter, and that's at the border. And that's a shared priority across equivalent, sovereign nations."
Furey said he's confident the premiers and the federal government will help to secure the border for the benefit of all Canadians.
The Newfoundland and Labrador government had been planning to pull American liquor from NLC shelves at midnight in response to Trump tariffs. Despite the delay in tariffs, Furey says the plan to stop selling American liquor is still going ahead for the time being.
"We'll be evaluating that over the next 24 hours or so," Furey said. "I'm hesitant to perform any sort of whiplash, recognizing that the president often thrives in a chaotic environment. So let's just see in the light of day whether he means what he says. And at that point, we'll reevaluate."
Ontario Premier Doug Ford had also proposed the same move, but announced Monday night that his government was pausing retaliatory measures as a result of the delay.
Jessica McCormick, president of the Newfoundland and Labrador Federation of Labour, also said the news come as relief for now — albeit temporary.
"I don't think we want to assume that this means tariffs aren't on the horizon in 30 days or in a couple months time. I think that we need to kind of remain vigilant," she said.
McCormick said much of the work that needs to be done in the next 30 days is already being done by the premier's roundtable on trade, as well as continuing to find opportunities to bolster provincial exports domestically and internationally.
"We should continue the work that we've been doing. Continue to share information and create a plan not just for a diversified economy, but for an economy that really protects and supports working people," she said.
"If we build an economy around supporting those people, than we can be resilient and strong."
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