B.C. Conservatives, Greens worried about unchecked power in proposed tariff response bill

Premier David Eby says the province needs to be able to act quickly to respond to the U.S. president’s escalating threats.

The B.C. NDP bill tabled Thursday in response to the rapidly evolving trade war with the U.S. was met by swift pushback by the opposition B.C. Conservatives and Greens.

Read more: B.C. legislation would give cabinet sweeping powers amid U.S. tariff threats

B.C. Conservative Leader John Rustad said while he thinks action is needed to counteract President Donald Trump’s tariffs, he worries the bill gives too much unchecked power to the NDP government. He said its impact in terms of power provided to government will be greater than during the pandemic.

“Giving themselves a blank cheque to do anything they want without any oversight,” he said after the bill was tabled in the legislature. “Without oversight of the legislature, without oversight and transparency to the people of British Columbia.”

The B.C. Greens expressed similar concerns in a statement to CTV News.

“We recognize the urgency of the situation but have concerns about the broad, unchecked powers given to cabinet in the new tariff bill,” said interim Leader Jeremy Valeriote. “Its vague wording could allow sweeping economic decisions without clear limits or transparency.”

“With decisions kept under cabinet confidence and reported only annually, the public must trust the government is acting in their best interest,” his statement continued. “There’s no need for secrecy, decisions should be made openly, not behind closed doors and the legislature should receive regular reporting on what decisions are being made.”

The bill would allow the government to implement various measures to respond to potential financial attacks by Trump, who has repeatedly mused about annexing Canada, including doing so by economic force.

The proposed legislation would remove or reduce interprovincial trade barriers, allow the provincial government to impose tolls and fees on American commercial vehicles travelling from Washington state to Alaska, and directs Crown corporations and entities like health authorities to avoid buying American products. It also allows cabinet to enact regulations without debate or vote in the legislature.

Premier David Eby acknowledged its extraordinary nature on Thursday when talking to the media, describing it as emergency legislation.

“If there’s an emergency like a natural disaster, we have these authorities. This is a human-caused disaster, we can see it coming, we don’t know what it is, and we need to be able to respond quickly,” he said.

Hamish Telford, a political science professor at the University of the Fraser Valley says the proposed legislation is likely justified under the circumstances.

“We’re in an unprecedented moment; the president of the United States has effectively declared war against Canada,” he said. “We need to be much more nimble response to his capricious actions against us.”