Prime Minister Mark Carney on Tuesday named a new advisory council on Canada-U.S. economic relations, expanding the number of voices, especially from industry, shaping Ottawa\u2019s approach to looming U.S trade talks.<\/p>\n
The council is made up of 24 members, including industry executives, union leaders and veterans such as former Quebec premier Jean Charest and former Conservative leader Erin O\u2019Toole. Only four members of the previous 18-member council remain from the Justin Trudeau government.<\/p>\n
It will meet for the first time on April 27, the Prime Minister\u2019s Office said in a statement, as Canada prepares for a July review of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or CUSMA, which sets the rules for most of the country\u2019s trade relationship with the U.S., its largest trading partner.<\/p>\n
But since U.S. President Donald Trump returned to office in early 2025, he has imposed tariffs on Canadian goods, upending the trade relationship, though so far a significant proportion of Canadian products have been exempt under CUSMA rules.<\/p>\n
Diya Jiang, a researcher at the University of Calgary\u2019s School of Public Policy who focusses on the politics of international trade, especially the U.S-Canada relationship, said the council\u2019s composition reflects the pressures facing Canada.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re seeing a lot more stakeholders,\u201d Jiang said. \u201cAnd these are very key stakeholders of U.S.-Canada trade, and they\u2019re very severely affected by the current tariff situation.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is a lot of merit in keeping some of the core group,\u201d she said, adding that figures like Charest bring experience dealing with past Trump-era negotiations.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Still, the new council, she said, moves away from what she described as a \u201cpolicy elite insider approach\u201d under the Trudeau government.<\/p>\n
It also points to what Ottawa may expect to confront at the negotiating table.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think we can understand a little bit of what issues the government anticipates will be on the table,\u201d Jiang said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
With representatives from energy and mining, she added, \u201ccritical minerals is going to be at least an issue.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDairy is also a very sensitive topic,\u201d she added. \u201cAnd it\u2019s one the United States has really put a lot of heat on.\u201d<\/p>\n
Quebec\u2019s dairy sector generates more than $6 billion a year in economic activity and supports tens of thousands of jobs, according to Les Producteurs de lait du Qu\u00e9bec.\u00a0The province\u2019s broader export economy \u2014 including aluminum, forestry and critical minerals \u2014 is also closely tied to U.S. demand and ultimately its trading relationship.<\/p>\n
Though one notable omission from the council is direct representation for the aerospace sector. Industry groups contacted by The Gazette did not respond before publication.<\/p>\n
Under CUSMA, the three countries can choose on July 1 to renew the deal for another 16 years. However, both Janice Charette, Canada\u2019s chief trade negotiator, and Jamieson Greer, a United States Trade Representative, have said trade issues are unlikely to be settled by the July deadline.<\/p>\n
Just in recent days, U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick called the North American trade deal a \u201cbad deal\u201d for Americans that could be allowed to \u201clapse\u201d this summer. <\/p>\n
He also called Carney\u2019s move to allow Chinese electric vehicles into Canada \u201cnuts.\u201d<\/p>\n
And in a video address over the weekend, Carney warned that Canada\u2019s deep economic ties to the United States had become a source of vulnerability. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a big shift in how to approach the United States,\u201d Jiang said. \u201cWe are accepting that perhaps we don\u2019t know what\u2019s going to happen. The focus of his administration is not to just bet on the United States, but to diversify.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jiang noted, however, that while rhetoric around the relationship has intensified, it may not reflect how negotiations ultimately unfold.<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes political rhetoric is one thing, and it might be different from the outcome,\u201d she said. \u201cEspecially with the Trump administration, we shouldn\u2019t focus too much on what\u2019s being said, but on what\u2019s happening in the actual negotiation.\u201d<\/p>\n
List of advisory committee members<\/p>\n
P.J. Akeeagok \u2014 former premier of Nunavut<\/p>\n
Cameron Bailey \u2014 CEO of the Toronto International Film Festival<\/p>\n
Ron Bedard \u2014 president and chief executive officer of ArcelorMittal Dofasco<\/p>\n
Val\u00e9rie Beaudoin \u2014 researcher at the Observatory on the United States<\/p>\n
Tabatha Bull \u2014 president and CEO of the Canadian Council for Indigenous Business<\/p>\n
Jean Charest \u2014 former premier of Quebec, former leader of the federal Progressive Conservative Party<\/p>\n
\u00c9mile Cordeau \u2014 CEO of Agropur Coop\u00e9rative<\/p>\n
Dennis Darby \u2014 president and CEO of Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters<\/p>\n
Ralph Goodale \u2014 former Liberal minister, former high commissioner to the U.K.<\/p>\n
Michael Harvey \u2014 executive director of the Canadian Agri-Food Trade Alliance<\/p>\n
Candace Laing \u2014 president and CEO of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce<\/p>\n
Erin O\u2019Toole \u2014 former Conservative Party leader<\/p>\n
Lana Payne \u2014 national president of Unifor<\/p>\n
Magali Picard \u2014 president of the F\u00e9d\u00e9ration des travailleurs et travailleuses du Qu\u00e9bec (FTQ)<\/p>\n
Fran\u00e7ois Poirier \u2014 president and CEO of TC Energy<\/p>\n
Jonathan Price \u2014 CEO of Teck<\/p>\n
Lisa Raitt \u2014 former Conservative minister<\/p>\n
Tracy Robinson \u2014 CEO of Canadian National Railway<\/p>\n
Ken Seitz \u2014 CEO of Nutrien<\/p>\n
Jean Simard \u2014 president and CEO of the Aluminum Association of Canada<\/p>\n
Luc Th\u00e9riault \u2014 CEO, Pulp and Wood Products and president of Domtar Canada<\/p>\n
Flavio Volpe \u2014 president of the Automotive Parts Manufacturers\u2019 Association<\/p>\n
Darryl White \u2014 CEO of the Bank of Montreal<\/p>\n
Susan Yurkovich \u2014 president and CEO of Canfor<\/p>\n
Do you have a story tip? Write to me at hnorth@postmedia.com<\/a><\/p>\n
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