Prime Minister Mark Carney is pulling Canada’s premiers into the war room today, hosting a high-stakes huddle at the Canadian War Museum as Chinese and U.S. tariffs squeeze the nation’s economy. With an election call looming—possibly kicking off Sunday for an April 28 vote—Carney’s Friday afternoon summit comes at a pivotal moment for a country caught in a global trade crossfire.
The PM’s office frames the meeting as a push to forge “a single Canadian economy” out of 13 fragmented ones, according to spokesperson Audrey Champoux. But the premiers are bringing their own battle plans. Saskatchewan’s Scott Moe zeroed in on China’s fresh tariffs on Canadian canola oil and meal—a retaliatory jab after Canada slapped levies on Chinese electric vehicles, steel, and aluminum. “It’s the most urgent tariff needing action,” Moe told reporters in Regina Thursday. “The PM should pick up the phone to China before hitting the campaign trail.”
Carney inherits a tariff tempest that’s been brewing since Justin Trudeau’s final premiers’ meetings, which tackled U.S. trade salvos before his March 14 exit. Last week, U.S. President Donald Trump upped the ante with 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports, triggering Canada’s expanded counterstrikes on American goods. Trump’s taunts about Canada joining the U.S. as its “51st state” only add fuel to the fire.
Fresh off an Edmonton visit Thursday—where he doled out housing funds and skated with the Oilers—Carney now faces a room of provincial leaders itching for solutions. With trade wars raging and an election clock ticking, today’s meeting could set the tone for his fledgling tenure.