Trump ‘tariffs’ threat should hasten trade liberalization among provinces

To much fanfare, President-elect Donald Trump has threatened to impose a 25 per cent tariff on all imported products coming into the United States from Canada. The premiers will meet with Prime Minister Trudeau this week to discuss the situation and possible next steps. While the discussion will no doubt focus on trade with the U.S. and other countries, they should also consider trade reform within our national border.

Indeed, provinces and territories have considerable autonomy to set rules for trade with other Canadian jurisdictions. These rules (or barriers) include different inspection and labelling requirements for agricultural goods, different trucking regulations, different standards and certifications for professionals, provincial monopolies over alcohol distribution, and more.

As with international barriers, trade barriers within Canada inhibit the free flow of goods, services and labour between provinces, which reduces productivity and increases prices. In other words, Canadians pay the price for our interprovincial trade barriers. And the costs are significant. Research suggests that interprovincial trade barriers add between 7.8 per cent and 14.5 per cent to the price of goods and services including groceries and other necessities.

More broadly, according to a 2020 study published by the Fraser Institute, interprovincial trade barriers cost the Canadian economy more than $32 billion per year or approximately 1.4 per cent of GDP. According to a TD report released last month, a 10 per cent across-the-board tariff by the U.S. (and the subsequent retaliation by Canada on U.S. imports) would reduce Canada’s GDP by approximately 2.4 percentage points over two years, compared to current baseline projections. Therefore, if Canadian policymakers removed interprovincial trade barriers they could mitigate much of the economic harm caused by potential new U.S. tariffs.

What would those changes look like?

While the Canadian Free Trade Agreement (CFTA)—a 2017 agreement between the federal government and all provincial and territorial governments—was an important step toward greater trade liberalization in Canada, the Trudeau government should propose a policy of “mutual recognition” so that any item that meets the regulatory requirements of a single province or territory automatically satisfies the requirements of another.

And while the federal government should promote free trade within Canada, provincial and territorial governments should also reduce barriers. In addition to negotiating agreements among themselves (such as the New West Partnership Trade Agreement between British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba) provinces can unilaterally eliminate self-imposed trade barriers (as Alberta did in 2019 with grazing permits for livestock and other reforms).

Trade is fundamental to economic activity, opportunity and prosperity for Canadians from coast to coast. In light of Trump’s aggressive trade posture, now more than ever the federal government and the provinces and territories should work together to remove interprovincial trade barriers to mitigate any economic damage from a hostile trade regime south of the border.

Jake Fuss

Director, Fiscal Studies, Fraser Institute

Grady Munro

Policy Analyst, Fraser Institute

Related Topics:#FraserInstitute #GradyMunro #JakeFuss CanadaUSTrade CanadianFreeTradeAgreement InterprovincialTrade ProvincialTrade TrumpTariffs

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Carney’s European pivot could quietly reshape Canada’s sovereignty

Published on June 15, 2025

Todayville

This article supplied by Troy Media.

By Isidoros Karderinis

Canadians must consider how closer EU ties could erode national control and economic sovereignty

As Prime Minister Mark Carney attempts to deepen Canada’s relationship with the European Union and other supranational institutions, Canadians should be asking a hard question: how much of our national independence are we prepared to give away? If you want a glimpse of what happens when a country loses control over its currency, trade and democratic accountability, you need only look to Bulgaria.

On June 8, 2025, thousands of Bulgarians took to the streets in front of the country’s National Bank. Their message was clear: they want to keep the lev and stop the forced adoption of the euro, scheduled for Jan. 1, 2026.

Bulgaria, a southeastern European country and EU member since 2007, is preparing to join the eurozone—a bloc of 20 countries that share the euro as a common currency. The move would bind Bulgaria to the economic decisions of the European Central Bank, replacing its national currency with one managed from Brussels and Frankfurt.

The protest movement is a vivid example of the tensions that arise when national identity collides with centralized policy-making. It was organized by Vazrazdane, a nationalist, eurosceptic political party that has gained support by opposing what it sees as the erosion of Bulgarian sovereignty through European integration. Similar demonstrations took place in cities across the country.

At the heart of the unrest is a call for democratic accountability. Vazrazdane leader Konstantin Kostadinov appealed directly to EU leaders, arguing that Bulgarians should not be forced into the eurozone without a public vote. He noted that in Italy, referendums on the euro were allowed with support from less than one per cent of citizens, while in Bulgaria, more than 10 per cent calling for a referendum have been ignored.

Protesters warned that abandoning the lev without a public vote would amount to a betrayal of democracy. “If there is no lev, there is no Bulgaria,” some chanted. For them, the lev is not just a currency: it is a symbol of national independence.

Their fears are not unfounded. Across the eurozone, several countries have experienced higher prices and reduced purchasing power after adopting the euro. The loss of domestic control over monetary policy has led to economic decisions being dictated from afar. Inflation, declining living standards and external dependency are real concerns.

Canada is not Bulgaria. But it is not immune to the same dynamics. Through trade agreements, regulatory convergence and global commitments, Canada has already surrendered meaningful control over its economy and borders. Canadians rarely debate these trade-offs publicly, and almost never vote on them directly.

Carney, a former central banker with deep ties to global finance, has made clear his intention to align more closely with the European Union on economic and security matters. While partnership is not inherently wrong, it must come with strong democratic oversight. Canadians should not allow fundamental shifts in sovereignty to be handed off quietly to international bodies or technocratic elites.

What’s happening in Bulgaria is not just about the euro—it’s about a people demanding the right to chart their own course. Canadians should take note. Sovereignty is not lost in one dramatic act. It erodes incrementally: through treaties we don’t read, agreements we don’t question, and decisions made without our consent.

If democracy and national control still matter to Canadians, they would do well to pay attention.

Isidoros Karderinis was born in Athens, Greece. He is a journalist, foreign press correspondent, economist, novelist and poet. He is accredited by the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs as a foreign press correspondent and has built a distinguished career in journalism and literature.

Troy Media empowers Canadian community news outlets by providing independent, insightful analysis and commentary. Our mission is to support local media in helping Canadians stay informed and engaged by delivering reliable content that strengthens community connections and deepens understanding across the country.

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Trump: ‘Changes are coming’ to aggressive immigration policy after business complaints

Published on June 12, 2025

Todayville

From The Center Square

By Brett Rowland

“So we’re going to have an order on that pretty soon – we can’t do that to our farmers and leisure too, hotels, we’re going to have to use a lot of common sense on that.”

President Donald Trump said Thursday that changes are coming to his aggressive immigration policies after complaints from farmers and business owners.

“Our great Farmers and people in the Hotel and Leisure business have been stating that our very aggressive policy on immigration is taking very good, long time workers away from them, with those jobs being almost impossible to replace,” Trump wrote in a social media post Thursday morning. “In many cases the Criminals allowed into our Country by the VERY Stupid Biden Open Borders Policy are applying for those jobs. This is not good. We must protect our Farmers, but get the CRIMINALS OUT OF THE USA. Changes are coming!”

Later Thursday, Trump made it clear that businesses need workers.

“Our farmers are being hurt badly. They have very good workers – they’re not citizens, but they’ve turned out to be great. And we’re going to have to do something about that,” the president said.

He added: “We can’t take farmers and take all their people and send them back because they don’t have, maybe, what they’re supposed to have.”

Just how Trump may change his approach to immigration enforcement remains unclear, but he said he wants to help farmers and business owners.

“You go into a farm and you look and people, they’ve been there for 20 or 25 years and they work great and the owner of the farm loves them and you’re supposed to throw them out. You know what happens? They end up hiring the criminals that have come in, the murderers from prisons and everything else,” Trump said.

Trump said changes would be coming soon, but gave little detail on how policies could change.

“So we’re going to have an order on that pretty soon – we can’t do that to our farmers and leisure too, hotels, we’re going to have to use a lot of common sense on that.”

In a later post on Truth Social, Trump said illegal immigration had destroyed American institutions.

“Biden let 21 Million Unvetted, Illegal Aliens flood into the Country from some of the most dangerous and dysfunctional Nations on Earth — Many of them Rapists, Murderers, and Terrorists. This tsunami of Illegals has destroyed Americans’ Public Schools, Hospitals, Parks, Community Resources, and Living Conditions,” the president wrote. “They have stolen American Jobs, consumed BILLIONS OF DOLLARS in Free Welfare, and turned once idyllic Communities, like Springfield, Ohio, into Third World Nightmares.”

He added that deportations would continue: “I campaigned on, and received a Historic Mandate for, the largest Mass Deportation Program in American History. Polling shows overwhelming Public Support for getting the Illegals out, and that is exactly what we will do. As Commander-in-Chief, I will always protect and defend the Heroes of ICE and Border Patrol, whose work has already resulted in the Most Secure Border in American History. Anyone who assaults or attacks an ICE or Border Agent will do hard time in jail. Those who are here illegally should either self deport using the CBP Home App or, ICE will find you and remove you. Saving America is not negotiable!”