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ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — Atlantic Canadian premiers woke up Tuesday in a trade war with the United States.
U.S. President Donald Trump imposed 25 per cent tariffs on most Canadian products, making good on months of threats. Energy flowing from Canada to the U.S. will be hit with 10 per cent duties.
The tariffs mark a stark new reality and a turning point for Atlantic Canada, says New Brunswick Premier Susan Holt.
Here’s how the Atlantic Canadian premiers reacted.
New Brunswick
Holt’s Liberal government unveiled a $162-million “tariff action plan,” which includes supports for businesses hit hard by the duties. With an estimated 6,000 jobs at risk in the province, the plan includes about $40 million for export-focused businesses to maintain staff and develop new markets. Impacted businesses will also be able to apply for loans of up to $5 million.
“These tariffs are an attack on Canada and on who we are, and they mark a turning point for our province and our country,” she said. “We will do whatever it takes to defend New Brunswickers.”
Northern Maine gets much of its electricity from New Brunswick’s power utility, and Holt said cutting it off was “on the table.”
“Our neighbours in Maine are our friends, and we want to put serious consideration into the decisions that might hurt some of the people that have already spoken up against the tariffs that the president has illegally enacted,” she said.
Holt also said she hopes the Canadian government will make employment insurance benefits more readily available for affected workers.
Newfoundland and Labrador
Andrew Furey, the outgoing Liberal premier in Canada’s easternmost province, is also looking to the federal government. He said employment insurance alone won’t be enough to cushion the blow from the tariffs.
Small- and medium-sized businesses will need capital or loans, similar to the programs launched in response to the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns, he said. “I’m not calling for a full-scale COVID-19 response, but one that is scaled to meet the appropriate impact of these tariffs,” he said in a telephone interview.
“This is a national crisis that requires a national approach.”
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston took a direct swipe at Trump, calling him a “short-sighted man.”
“(Trump) has declared economic war on our country. While I hope that eventually Americans will do the right thing and remove the tariffs, in the meantime we must respond,” Houston, a Progressive Conservative, told reporters in Toronto.
He said American officials told him during a recent trip to Washington that they worried about access to Canadian oil, uranium and critical minerals. “They feel a bit of vulnerability on that,” he said. “When we hit back, we should hit them where it hurts. It would be in those areas.”
Houston’s government has set aside $200 million for a contingency fund to deal with the tariffs, though the premier has not yet said how the money will be spent.
Prince Edward Island
American liquor products were pulled from government store shelves in Prince Edward Island, as they were in the rest of Atlantic Canada.
Vulnerable people stand to be impacted the most by Trump’s tariffs as prices go up, said Progressive Conservative Premier Rob Lantz. “We are all a bit angry, but it’s time for us to figure out how to move forward under these circumstances,” he said.
His government announced a new fund to help cover expenses for exporters to build markets outside the U.S. Lantz also vowed to keep pushing the federal government to remove tolls on the Confederation Bridge and the ferry that both link the Island to the rest of Canada.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 4, 2025.
— With files from Keith Doucette and Michael MacDonald in Halifax
Sarah Smellie, The Canadian Press
