Tag Archives: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
Canadian tariffs would ‘cripple’ Maine lobster industry, state’s top fisheries leader says
Maine’s outgoing commissioner of marine resources is warning about the dire impacts of newly imposed tariffs on Canadian imports. Maine sends about $200 million worth of lobster each year to Canada, where it’s processed and sent back to the U.S. or to third markets. Marine Resources Commission Pat Keliher said the tariffs could trigger major cuts in what Maine lobstermen are paid for their catch that could “cripple” the state’s iconic fishery. “The only way for this to be made up on the cost perspective is at the boat price,” Keliher said Tuesday during an appearance on Maine Calling. “So I am very concerned that going into this year, that we are going to see all time low boat prices. And… with the declining volume of lobster, we will see, potentially hundreds of people going out of business because of these tariffs.” more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 07:50
Will the tariff tiff tear at the fabric of Canada-U.S. seafood trade?
From snow crab and lobster to Pacific salmon, seafood is a trade driver between Canada and the United States. This cross-border commerce has mutually benefited the two nations, but rising trade tensions now threaten this critical supply chain. This month, President Donald Trump has signed executive orders imposing broad tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China, its top trading partners. With a trade war still looming, the seafood sector faces uncertainty over pricing, market access and job security. Across Canada, industry leaders are bracing for economic fallout as possible tariffs could disrupt the flow of seafood between the two nations. The seafood trade between Canada and the United States generates billions in revenue annually, benefiting both countries. Canada imported (U.S.) $3.1 billion worth of seafood in 2023 alone, with the United States supplying the largest share at $1 billion – making up 31 percent of Canada’s total seafood imports. On the flip side, the United States imported more than $3.6 billion in seafood products from Canada, making it the country’s largest supplier. more, >>CLICK TO READ<<< 10:39
Fish harvester says possible tariffs leave N.L.’s fishery with a lot of uncertainty
A pause in the tariff dispute with the United States is not bringing any comfort to Lee Melindy. “We’ve got to have fishing, we’ve got to have processors, and we got a company to send it into the States,” he said. “Those are all a circle. And if one of those pieces of the circle falls apart, it is detrimental on the rest of it.” Melindy is a fish harvester based in Lumsden, N.L. He’s a full-time crew member, deck boss and helps his father — the enterprise owner — in the wheelhouse. It’s been almost 30 years since he first entered the fishery, and he’s seen a lot of changes. “Over the years, I mean, we’ve had uphill battles and we’ve been good and whatnot, but when you’re looking at a possible four years, it could be very serious into the operating of an enterprise,” he said. This week, U.S. president Donald Trump said he would put a hold on his proposed 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods for 30 days. With that, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau paused Canada’s counter-tariffs. Video, more, >>CLICK TO READ<<07:30
Seafood sector is united in face of tariff threats, says N.L.’s fisheries minister
A unified effort to navigate the Newfoundland and Labrador seafood industry through the uncertainty of U.S. tariff threats began on Wednesday, with more than two dozen people joining by video conference in the first fishery roundtable meeting. The meeting was chaired by Fisheries Minister Gerry Byrne, who described the discussions as “one of the best meetings I’ve ever hosted.” The meeting was spawned from a broader premier’s roundtable that was assembled last month in response to a threat from U.S. President Donald Trump to place a 25 per cent tariff on Canadian goods entering the U.S. market, including seafood. Joining the meeting were leaders in all sectors of the fishery, including union leaders, processors, harvesters, marketing specialists and the aquaculture industry. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 18:42
Fishery in jeopardy: Trump tariff threat putting NL fishing season at risk
The threat of looming American tariffs on Canadian exports doesn’t just have the Newfoundland and Labrador fishing industry concerned about bottom lines. There’s a worry if there can be a fishery at all. Often sides that are at odds with one another on many matters, both the association representing the province’s seafood processing companies and the union representing the province’s fish harvesters and plant workers held a joint news conference in St. John’s on Monday, Feb. 3, to discuss the situation the fishery finds itself with 25 per cent tariffs expected to be imposed on Canadian exports into the United States. A last-minute negotiation between Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and US President Donald Trump on Feb. 3 delayed the tariff threat for 30 days. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 16:03
Trump to pause promised tariffs for 30 days after speaking with Trudeau
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Monday U.S. President Donald Trump will hold off on levying tariffs on Canada for at least 30 days after Canada made a series of commitments to improve security along the border. The country can let out a collective sigh of relief — at least for now. To get Trump to shelve his punishing tariffs, Trudeau told him Canada is pressing ahead with a $1.3-billion border security plan that includes reinforcing the 49th parallel with new choppers, technology and personnel and stepping up its co-ordination with American officials to crack down on Trump’s stated priorities: illegal drugs and migrants. Trudeau said, all told, there will be 10,000 front-line personnel working along the border as part of a push to make it safer. 4 Videos, links, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 17:49
Danielle Smith: How Team Canada can overcome Trump tariffs
Like most Canadians, I was very disappointed with U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to place tariffs on all Canadian goods. This decision will harm both Canadian and American consumers, workers and businesses alike, and strain the historic and important friendship between our two nations. Canada has responded with counter-tariffs of our own on specific U.S. imports that Canadians can generally purchase domestically or source from non-U.S. suppliers. Although I understand the need for this proportionate response, make no mistake, a tariff war with the United States will hurt millions of Canadian families, workers and businesses. As premier of Alberta, I am calling on my fellow premiers, the prime minister and all of our national leaders to de-escalate the rhetoric as much as possible and look to diplomacy and advocacy as our primary tool to resolve this conflict. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 09:46
Trump announces tariff talks with Canada, Mexico as global stocks slump
US President Donald Trump said he will discuss the punishing tariffs he has levied on Canada and Mexico with both countries on Monday, as markets sank on fears over the impact on the global economy. The 25 percent duties — footed by American companies importing from Mexico and Canada — sent European and Asian stocks slumping at the open Monday. The Mexican peso and Canadian dollar also sank against the greenback, while oil jumped despite Trump placing the levy on Canada’s energy imports at 10 percent to limit a spike in fuel prices. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 08:12
Terry Newman: Trudeau puts Canada last
It’s finally happened. On Saturday, U.S. President Donald Trump announced that he will be imposing a 10 per cent tariff on Canadian energy products and 25 per cent tariffs on everything else, starting Tuesday. We have no idea what kind of negotiations took place between the Liberals and Trump. All we know is that Canada is now facing the greatest economic threat it has faced in decades. Here’s what has to happen now: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the Liberal party need to end their unconscionable self-serving break from Parliament immediately, so that elected MPs from across the country can discuss the best path forward for Canada now. Canadians will want to know what happened during negotiations with the Americans, so the Liberal party had better have some answers. While some cabinet ministers appear to have been having a good time taking photographs in Washington, often with Democrats, it’s unclear what kind of negotiations were held, or what the content of them were. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 08:42
Trudeau hits back at the U.S. with big tariffs after Trump launches a trade war
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced late Saturday the federal government will hit back against the U.S. after President Donald Trump launched a trade war this weekend with punitive tariffs on all Canadian goods. Trudeau said Canada won’t stand for an attack from a country that was supposed to be an ally and friend. Ottawa will immediately levy retaliatory tariffs on a whole host of American goods as payback for Trump’s attempt to wreck the Canadian economy, Trudeau said. To start, Canada will slap 25 per cent tariffs on $30 billion worth of American goods coming into Canada as of Tuesday. The tariffs will then be applied to another $125 billion worth of American imports in three weeks’ time. Trudeau said there is more non-tariff trade action coming to try to force Trump’s hand and get him to call off the hostilities. Videos. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 07:11
U.S. tariffs on Canadian goods will come into effect Saturday, White House says
U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday offered vague details on his plans to impose tariffs on goods coming from Canada, Mexico and China, after a spokesperson said they would take effect Saturday. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the president would put a 25 per cent tariff on Canada and Mexico and a 10 per cent tariff on goods from China during a briefing on Friday. Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office hours later, Trump said he expects the tariffs would include oil, gas, steel, aluminum, copper and microchips — but potentially with staggered dates and rates, depending on the product. Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly said she heard the president’s public comments but had not received any further information. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 09:36
N.S. premier clarifies his government stands by Georges Bank moratorium
Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston says his government will respect the oil and gas development moratorium for Georges Bank and he’s blaming unnamed special interest groups looking to “promote falsehoods” for a misunderstanding of his position on the matter. The premier made the comments in a letter he sent fishing industry representatives several days after saying his government would be open to revisiting the decades-old development moratorium around the valuable and productive fishing grounds. “This narrative grew because special interests aligned to promote falsehoods,” Houston wrote in the letter. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 14:56
UPDATED: Justin Trudeau resigns
Breaking: Trudeau to address Canadians as Liberal caucus pushes him to resign– Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will make an announcement about his future Monday morning at 10:45 a.m. ET after months of questions about his leadership and a Liberal nosedive in the polls. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 09:49
Updated: Justin Trudeau resigns as Liberal Party leader: Live updates, reaction after prime minister’s news conference – Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has resigned as the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada in a statement made at Rideau Cottage on Monday morning. Trudeau will stay on as Canada’s prime minister until the Liberals appoint a new leader. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 13:02
‘A lot of anxiety’: N.L. seafood industry will see big hit if Trump follows through with tariffs
President-elect Donald Trump’s 25 per cent tariff threat is worrying people in Newfoundland and Labrador’s seafood industry. More than 60 per cent of the province’s seafood is sold in the United States. “There’s certainly a lot of anxiety right now in the seafood industry, and I’m no exception,” said Labrador Gem Seafoods’ president Danny Dumaresque in an interview with The Telegram on Wednesday, Nov. 27. Trump said in a social media post Monday night that on his first day in office, he would impose the tariffs until Canada and Mexico stop illegal border crossings and prevent drugs such as fentanyl from entering the U.S. “Both Mexico and Canada have the absolute right and power to easily solve this long simmering problem. We hereby demand that they use this power, and until such time that they do, it is time for them to pay a very big price!” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 07:57
YEAH!!! Newfoundland fish harvesters crash news conference to demand reinstating of cod moratorium
Fish harvesters in Newfoundland crashed the podium at a meeting of Canada’s environment ministers in St. John’s on Wednesday, demanding a meeting with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau over the federal government’s decision to reopen the commercial cod fishery in Newfoundland and Labrador. Moments before the start of the news conference, which was to detail two days of meetings of the Canadian Council of Environment Ministers, Newfoundland and Labrador Environment Minister Bernard Davis was interrupted by a loud siren. Glen Winslow, a St. John’s fish harvester, then walked up to meet Davis at the podium from a group of around 15 protesters. “Sorry we got to do this, my buddy, but this is too important to Newfoundland and Labrador,” Winslow said to Davis over the news conference’s microphone while the other ministers watched on. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 17:43
Accused poachers ‘cannot pretend to hide,’ says province’s top court
New Brunswick’s highest court has shed light on an important decision it made in a lawsuit against alleged poachers accused of stealing baby eels. The Court of Appeal delivered its reasons late last month why it had ordered the province’s registrar of motor vehicles to turn over the names of 115 vehicle owners to Rothesay businesswoman Mary Ann Holland, the owner of Brunswick Aquaculture Limited and Alder Seafood Limited. Her lawyer Barry Morrison argued in a filing last month that Holland and her staff had witnessed dozens of people illegally catching lucrative baby eels in river estuaries in the spring of 2023 after Ottawa had closed the fishery. more, >>click to read<< 07:53
Mi’kmaw fishers say DFO officers left them to walk for hours at night after seizing boots, phones
Two Mi’kmaw elver fishermen say they were forced to walk in sock feet for hours along a rural Nova Scotia highway in the middle of the night last week after they were detained by federal fisheries officers who took their boots and phones before releasing them. Blaise Sylliboy and Kevin Hartling, who assert they have a treaty right to fish for the lucrative baby eels despite this year’s season being cancelled, were joined Tuesday morning by dozens of protesters outside the Department of Fisheries and Oceans building in Dartmouth, N.S. “When we were walking, there’s times I’m like, ‘Man, if we stop, we’re going to die,’ because our feet were just soaked,” said Hartling. more, >>click to read<< 06:22
Seal hunt advocate takes issue with EU president’s claim that Indigenous exemptions are working
The European Union’s ban on seal products did not feature heavily — if at all — during discussions between Canadian and European leaders on Friday in St. John’s, but one comment made during a news conference has drawn the ire of a group that advocates for seal harvesters. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told reporters she believes the exemption for Indigenous sealers is going well. Doug Chiasson, executive director of the Fur Institute of Canada, was taken aback by her comments. The biggest issue, according to Chiasson, is that the 2009 ban destroyed the existing market for seal products in Europe. When the Indigenous exemption was introduced in 2015, he said, there was no longer a market for the products. >>click to read<< 13:52
Sealing industry protests lack of talks on EU ban at summit in N.L.
Implemented by the EU in 2009, the trade ban on seal products, based on ethical concerns, deprived thousands of seal hunters in Eastern Canada of their most important market. The sealing industry, whose biggest footprint is in Nunavut and Newfoundland and Labrador, has never recovered. Gil Thériault, the head of the association representing Quebec’s seal hunters, said planning two days of bilateral meetings in Newfoundland and Labrador, “the very place Ottawa abandoned,” and not bringing up the seal products ban “sends a message of complete disregard for people in coastal communities.” According to groups representing seal hunters and processors, the EU embargo is the result of an extremely effective lobbying campaign from animal-rights groups, who depicted the hunt as an inhumane slaughter. Sealers say that’s false and that the hunt is sustainable and conducted without cruelty. >>click to read<< 10:53
FFAW Welcomes New Federal Fisheries Minister
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s federal cabinet shuffle today has announced Diane Lebouthillier as the new Minister for Fisheries and Oceans, replacing the Joyce Murray as the federal head of fisheries management. The Union that represents all inshore fish harvesters in Newfoundland and Labrador looks forward to working with Minister Lebouthillier, hoping for a renewed focus on robust science and economically sustainable management. >click to read< 12:53
Canada Shuts Down 15 Fish Farms in B.C., Citing Risks to Wild Salmon
After years of concerns over the impact of aquaculture on wild sockeye salmon, Canada’s fisheries department has decided not to renew the operating permits of 15 Atlantic salmon farms in an environmentally sensitive area of British Columbia. In a news release, Fisheries Minister Joyce Murray noted that B.C.’s salmon runs are in “serious, long-term decline,” and some are at risk of collapse if action is not taken. Ten years have passed since the Cohen commission’s report, and more recent research indicates that the diseases associated with salmon-farming may have an impact on wild salmon in general and on Fraser River salmon smolts in particular. >click to read< 16:00
SEA-NL renews call for improved search and rescue for Labrador, federal inquiry into fishing vessel safety
Seaward Enterprises Association of Newfoundland and Labrador (SEA-NL) joins in the renewed call for more search and rescue resources for Labrador and a federal inquiry into fishing vessel safety — encouraging other stakeholders like the FFAW-Unifor to do the same. “Safety at sea is a life-and-death issue that demands all hands on deck,” says Merv Wiseman, a member of SEA-NL’s board of directors, and an outspoken advocate for search and rescue/fishing vessel safety. “The lives of mariners off Labrador are as important as the lives of mariners off Newfoundland, and search and rescue resources must reflect that.” >click to read< 21:03
A seafood processor from the Îles-de-la-Madeleine in serious financial difficulty
With an estimated debt of between $3.5 million and $4 million to its lobster fishermen, the Madelinan seafood processing company LA Renaissance des Îles (LRDI) has decided to place itself under the protection of the Act respecting the ‘insolvency. This is what the president and CEO and sole shareholder, Lynn Albert, announced to the fishermen who supply her with lobster, during an information meeting held on Friday morning, learned the QMI Agency. LRDI is in default of payment for its dockside purchases from 66 fishermen for the last two weeks of the 2022 fishing season, totaling $3.7 million. Added to this are, among other things, deductions for government rebates and other operating expenses of fishing businesses. >click to read< 07:34
Trudeau launches expanded oceans protection plan, with aim to reach more regions
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced new details about the federal government’s $3.5-billion plan to protect the oceans and boost coast guard facilities on the world’s longest national coastline. In its most recent budget, the government pledged to add $2 billion over nine years to the $1.5 billion already set aside for ocean protection. Speaking at a news conference on Bowen Island, B.C., Trudeau said the government had now launched an extended version of the Oceans Protection Plan. Initiatives already funded by the program include the opening of six coast guard stations in British Columbia and Newfoundland and Labrador, establishing an Indigenous-led coast guard auxiliary in B.C., the restoration of coastal aquatic habitats, and the removal and disposal of hundreds of abandoned boats. >click to read< 15:56
SEA-NL calls for public inquiry into fishing vessel safety, search and rescue
Seaward Enterprises Association of Newfoundland and Labrador is calling for a joint, federal/provincial commission of inquiry into fishing vessel safety, and search and rescue response in this province to investigate why incidents and deaths at sea are on the rise. “There is no greater indictment of serious, systemic problems with fishing vessel safety and search and rescue than the rise in mariner deaths,” says Ryan Cleary, SEA-NL’s Executive Director. “Fishing is already one of the most dangerous occupations in the world without lax government oversight increasing those risks.” > click to read < 13:30
Trip limits must be addressed in Newfoundland and Labradors snow crab fishery
SEA-NL is demanding Premier Andrew Furey address trip limits in the snow crab fishery or his government may have blood on its hands before the end of the fishing season. “The inshore fleet has one of the most dangerous jobs without trip limits adding to the risk,” says Ryan Cleary, Executive Director of SEA-NL. “Trip limits put pressure on enterprise owners — who are also dealing with the threat of a price drop, and fishery closures in the case of molting or soft-shell crab — to fish in weather they would not ordinarily fish in,” he said. “If government stands idly by and lives are lost this crab fishing season the province will have to answer for them directly.” >click to read< 15:09
The Federal Competition Act
Seaward Enterprises Association of Newfoundland and Labrador (SEA-NL) is calling on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to include fish pricing in the Federal Competition Act with planned amendments to the legislation. “The only industry in Canada excluded from the Federal Competition Act is the Newfoundland and Labrador fishery, and the inshore fleet pays the price in terms of less money for their fish,” says Ryan Cleary, Executive Director of SEA-NL. In the federal budget released earlier this month, the Trudeau government revealed plans to make amendments to toughen Canadian competition laws. >click to read< 15:42
SEA-NL calls for third-party investigation into DFO NL
Seaward Enterprises Association of Newfoundland and Labrador (SEA-NL) is calling on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to order an independent investigation of the operations of the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans in the province amid alarming allegations of political interference raised by the CBC. “DFO’s last shred of credibility in this province is on the line,” says Ryan Cleary, SEA-NL’s interim Executive Director. “The allegations by the union representing DFO scientists not only call into question the department’s faith in itself, but what little faith inshore harvesters and all Newfoundlanders and Labradorians have left in DFO to manage the wild commercial fisheries.” >click to read< 10:48
Should the next fisheries minister come from central Canada?
On election night, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s first cabinet casualty came early as Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan tumbled to defeat in Nova Scotia’s South Shore, St. Margarets riding. Her defeat means her successor will inherit the unresolved dispute over Nova Scotia’s Indigenous moderate livelihood lobster fishery. And that potentially means a clean slate for negotiations between all parties involved. And the chief of the band at the centre of that fishery says maybe the best way to establish that clean slate would be to enlist a fisheries minister from the interior, rather than the coasts, where they would be exposed to the pressures of their community. >click to read< 20:33
Trudeau Comments On Moderate Livelihood Fisheries
The Prime Minister says the federal government continues to work on implementing moderate livelihood fisheries with Indigenous communities. Justin Trudeau says reconciliation is important, but the fishery needs to be done right. “We’ve been engaged in very very close dialogue, both with commercial fishers and Indigenous communities to establish the right path forward,” >click to read< 09:23
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