Vancouver's councillor Bligh speaks out on 'unjust' tariffs at trade summit
Vancouver City Councillor Rebecca Bligh is in Washington, D.C., for a North American cities’ summit on trade, where U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs and addressing Canada-U.S. trade tensions are high on the priority list.
Bligh is also the president of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, and she addressed reporters Friday morning to share her thoughts on the U.S.-Canada trade war she characterized as “unjust.”
“Our bond was once the envy of the world,” she said. “Now… I hear Canadians’ concerns: ‘Will the cost of living increase? How will I be able to afford groceries? Will I lose my job?'”
The trilateral summit brings together mayors and municipal officials from across the continent, many of whom wanted to discuss the impact of tariffs.
“Mayors from the U.S., Canada, and Mexico are speaking with one voice,” Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow said. “We express our fear. The fear of prices of everything going up. Cost of living making life unaffordable. Jobs lost.”
Bligh said the vast majority, about 90 per cent, of North American businesses are small businesses — and many in that sector rely heavily on cross-border trade. Local businesses struggling means jobs are next “on the chopping block.”
Bligh and her Ontario counterpart Chow explained that as municipal politicians, they’re on the ground in their communities — feeling the local impacts of these federal policies.
Bligh said the tariffs would directly impact infrastructure development and housing construction, including affordable housing developments.
“Municipalities are on the front line of this economic downturn, which is hitting our country when it is already at its most vulnerable,” Bligh said. “Right now, all our energy should be on securing the long-term prosperity of Canada. However, we find ourselves engaged in a battle against unfair tariffs.”
But Chow and Bligh also said they have hope amid the difficult situation of escalating tariffs. Mayors from both Mexico and the U.S. have echoed their concerns and hope the summit can help governments at the local level navigate a way forward.
“As we share our best practices, we can get through this trade war by continually connecting with each other,” Chow said. “Our voices will be heard.”