Mayor Mark Sutcliffe says he will bring forward a motion at next week’s city council meeting to address local business and economic impacts of new U.S. tariffs on Canadian goods. “In light of the increased tariffs imposed by the United States on Canada, I will be bringing a motion to city council on Wednesday to ensure we are doing everything possible to protect local businesses, strengthen our local economy, buy local, and create strong local jobs,” Sutcliffe said on social media Saturday. “Let’s keep working together to protect Ottawa and Canada.” The 50 per cent tariffs have come into effect after the U.S. and Canada could not reach a new deal before a deadline imposed by President Donald Trump. The tariffs target US$20 billion worth of Canadian goods, including cement, wine and hockey sticks, which the Carney government has characterized as a discriminatory trade policy. Trump threatened to impose the tariffs last month to address issues flagged as irritants to the U.S., including provincial bans on alcohol imports, tariffs on some American made auto exports and quotas on tariff-free U.S. dairy exports. Prime Minister Mark Carney has vowed “dollar for dollar” retaliatory tariffs on Sept. 8. Ottawa City Council approved a motion to prioritize the purchase of local, Canadian and non-American goods shortly after Trump took office and threatened tariffs last year. Under the rules passed by council, any procurement bid under $125,000 must have a least one of the three required bids to be from a local supplier. The city also launched an online Tariff Toolkit to provide residents and businesses information on how the tariffs could impact them. Last month, the city installed a giant maple leaf flag on the side of Ottawa City Hall to promote Canadian unity in response to the trade war. With files from CTVNews.ca
