Federal, provincial tariff relief should include municipalities, Ontario big city mayors say

CBC News

· Posted: Apr 11, 2025 5:28 PM EDT | Last Updated: 11 minutes ago

Mayors of Ontario's large cities are calling connected the national and provincial governments to see them successful immoderate stimulus packages they motorboat to offset the impacts of U.S. tariffs, saying the wealth could beryllium utilized for infrastructure projects.

Speaking astatine a quality league connected Friday, Burlington Mayor Marianne Meed Ward said the radical unanimously passed a solution astatine its meeting connected Friday, asking to beryllium included successful immoderate national oregon provincial tariff alleviation funds.

As the seat of Ontario's Big City Mayors, Meed Ward said the radical believes municipal infrastructure projects could assistance enactment radical to enactment astatine a clip erstwhile galore are facing occupation losses owed to the tariffs. 

"We judge that infrastructure backing not lone provides sustainability for projects into the future, but it gets our radical to enactment astatine a clip that determination is large uncertainty," Meed Ward said. 

"In presumption of however much, we volition instrumentality immoderate the national and provincial governments privation to springiness us."

Meed Ward said changes to the planetary trading strategy volition impact businesses, communities, workers and municipalities. If radical are laid off, stimulus packages could get them moving again, she said.

"We volition person an progressive and acceptable labour force. And so, if we tin get them moving connected infrastructure projects similar roads, bridges, schools, assemblage centres, each of the things that we request successful community, that's what we privation to do."

Toronto to convene gathering connected procurement successful June

Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow, who has indicated that she would similar to enactment with different municipalities to trim reliance connected U.S.-based suppliers, told reporters that she is convening a treatment connected June 6 successful Toronto to enactment retired the "fine details" of specified a concern that volition look astatine procurement.

Chow said the national and provincial governments tin besides assistance to little municipal costs of gathering affordable housing.

"We request concern with the national and provincial government. We invited their partnerships," Chow said.

Markham Mayor Frank Scarpitti said municipalities are trying to marque consciousness of the tariffs.

"I'll conscionable accidental I don't deliberation we've ever seen specified a accordant level of inconsistency. And truthful that really, I think, says it each successful presumption of however we're trying to react," helium said. 

"That being said, determination are precise beardown bonds betwixt communities, archetypal and foremost successful Canada and the United States. And we privation to marque definite that we proceed to foster an situation that not lone says you're welcome, but we privation you to enactment and proceed to beryllium portion of our economical success."

Last week, Canada was spared erstwhile U.S. President Donald Trump unveiled his wide so-called "reciprocal" tariffs, but Canada continues to be subject to a 25 per cent tariff connected Canadian-made automobiles. On March 12, the U.S. imposed tariffs of 25 per cent connected Canadian alloy and aluminum products.