B.C. assembles ‘war room’ as U.S. tariff threat looms on Saturday

VANCOUVER — The relationship between the U.S. and Canada has “fundamentally changed,” regardless of whether U.S. President Donald Trump’s promised tariffs on Canadian goods materialize on Saturday, according to the chair of a new B.C. cabinet “war room” to tackle the threat.

Ravi Kahlon, who is also British Columbia’s housing minister, said the provincial government would work to diversify the province’s economy and reduce its reliance on the United States.

“We cannot live four years with threats constantly coming from a Trump administration,” Kahlon told reporters in Vancouver, shortly after Premier David Eby announced he had assembled a cabinet committee to counter the tariff threat.

Committee chair Kahlon said Eby directed his ministers to take action ranging from diversifying trading partners and strengthening ties across the Pacific, to producing more of B.C.’s food locally.

A statement from Eby’s office on Wednesday said he was tasking the new committee with co-ordinating a “whole-of-government” approach aimed at protecting B.C. workers, businesses and the economy against the tariff threat.

Eby’s office described the committee as a “day-to-day war room.”

Trump’s proposed 25 per cent tariffs are a “direct attack on B.C. families,” and every minister has an important role to play in fighting back, Eby said in the statement.

Kahlon said it’s hard to speculate what might happen on Saturday.

“We have heard so many different things come out of the U.S. that it’s hard to know exactly what they’re thinking or what they’re doing,” he said. “The message to people is we’re ready. We’re going to respond as a country, we’re united.”

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau held a virtual meeting with premiers on Wednesday, and Kahlon said he would leave it to Eby to share those details.

“That being said, it doesn’t matter if the tariffs come on Saturday or not,” Kahlon said. “We have to pivot, we have to change, we have to do things differently, and that’s what the premier has directed us to do.”

Trump’s press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, told reporters at the White House on Tuesday the tariffs plan was “still on the books” for Saturday.

Trump’s pick to oversee his tariff agenda, meanwhile, said hitting Canada with across-the-board duties of 25 per cent would be an emergency measure to achieve border security and could be followed by more tariffs in the future.

Howard Lutnick told Wednesday’s Senate hearing on his nomination to lead the U.S. Department of Commerce that the threatened levy is not a “tariff per se,” but a policy meant to force America’s neighbours to take action at the borders.

Eby said Tuesday he thought there was “still time for President Trump to work with us,” as Canadian officials have indicated a strong desire to address his concerns around the flow of illegal drugs and migrants from Canada into the United States.

But he said the province would ensure every harm inflicted on B.C. families by the tariffs is met and matched with a proportional response.

The statement from Eby’s office said the province has a three-point strategy, which includes responding with “tough counteractions” and outreach to American decision makers, as well as diversifying B.C.’s trade markets, strengthening the economy by expediting projects and supporting industries and their workers.

Nine other B.C. ministers have been named to the new committee, including Finance Minister Brenda Bailey, Energy Minister Adrian Dix, Jobs Minister Diana Gibson, Forests Minister Ravi Parmar and Mining Minister Jagrup Brar.

Asked about Trump’s repeated suggestion that Canada would be better off as the 51st U.S. state, Kahlon said threats will only make Canadians stronger.

“Quite frankly, excuse my language, but eff that idea. That is not happening.”

— With files from Kelly Geraldine Malone in Washington

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 29, 2025.

Brenna Owen, The Canadian Press