Premier calls for end of tariff on Chinese EVs

Premier Wab Kinew is urging Prime Minister Mark Carney to resolve the trade dispute with China after recent comments from the Chinese ambassador to Canada suggested China was ready to lift the levy on canola and pork.

According to a news report by CTV, the ambassador said that China is prepared to lift retaliatory tariffs if Canada removes the 100 per cent tariff on Chinese-made electric vehicles.

Kinew sent a letter to Carney calling the moment “critical.”

“The retaliatory tariffs imposed by China have already caused steep price declines for canola, threatening the livelihoods of thousands of Manitoba farmers and the stability of rural communities,” the letter states.

“Every day these tariffs remain in place, the harm to prairie producers deepens.”

China hit Canadian canola with a 75.8 per cent tariff last month. The measure was widely seen as a response to Canada’s 100 per cent tariff on Chinese electric vehicles.

In his letter Kinew said the current conflict has created a “two-front trade war,” stating that while protecting the auto sector is important, the approach also “disproportionately impacts Western Canada.”

Kinew asked the prime minister eliminate the electric vehicle tariff in exchange for restoring full access for Canadian agricultural products to the Chinese market, which would “uphold regional fairness and prevent further damage to producers and families.”

In September the Liberal government announced $370-million in support meant to ease the pain in the canola industry.

At the time the federal government said that a new biofuel production incentive is meant to address “immediate competitiveness challenges.”

Carney also said the government will temporarily increase the amount producers can receive in interest-free advances to $500,000, and boost funding to support diversification to new markets.

nicole.buffie@freepress.mb.ca