Ontario Premier Doug Ford is imploring Mark Carney to not lift tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles because the prime minister heads to Beijing in a bid to construct relations.
It’s been a long-standing request of the premier, who’s trying to keep Ontario’s struggling, fledgling electric vehicle industry intact within the face of massive pressure from america and growing economic concern.
Ford told reporters on Tuesday he hadn’t spoken to Carney before his China trip to remind him of his request, but planned to text him in a bid to avoid any softening of the economic measures.
100 per cent tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles were introduced by the federal government in 2024. In response, China slapped reciprocal tariffs on Canadian canola and pork, which Saskatchewan and Manitoba have complained are harming agriculture of their provinces.
China charges a 76 per cent tariff on Canadian canola seed imports and a 100 per cent tariff on canola oil, meal and peas.
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The 2 tariffs have arrange competing provincial interests that pit Ontario against the Prairies.
Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe, who has visited China before and is now on the trip with Carney, has repeatedly called for the tariffs to be removed. He has said they damage an already established agricultural sector in favour of a barely begun electric vehicle economy.
The Ford government, however, has poured billions into incentives to draw EV projects to Ontario and believes the tariffs are mandatory to maintain its vision moving along.
“I’m absolutely 100 per cent dead against this,” Ford said, acknowledging he had not yet repeated his concerns to Carney. “I’ll reach out to him and text message and just tell them our concerns.”
The premier has softened his stance somewhat recently, saying he can be open to a Chinese company organising a production facility in Ontario for its electric vehicles.
“In the event that they’re willing to come back here and put money into a plant identical to GM, Stellantis, Ford, Volkswagen, Honda, Toyota and are available here and manufacture, create jobs and create parts here, well, now we’re on a complete different page,” he said.
Asked if he knew of any Chinese corporations willing to make the move, Ford indicated conversations hadn’t begun.
“We’ll need to see,” he said. “I’m going to take a seat down with the prime minister when he gets back, discover what the conversation is, and we’ll go from there.”
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