KELOWNA — Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government is preparing financial supports for the forestry sector as the United States ratchets up duties on Canadian softwood lumber. …It comes amid heightened trade tensions with the United States over softwood lumber, a decades-long friction point in the Canada-U.S. trade relationship. The US Commerce Department recently announced it intends to hike anti-dumping duties on Canadian softwood to just over 20%. The prime minister outlined a series of supports at a lumber mill in West Kelowna, B.C., on Tuesday, saying Canada will be its own best customer by relying on more Canadian timber as it works to double the pace of new home building to almost 500,000 homes a year over the next decade.
In support of the Canadian announcement:
- FPAC’s Derek Nighbor: Welcomes Prime Minister Carney’s Support for Forest Sector Employees and Businesses
- CWC’s Rick Jeffrey: Welcomes Federal Investment in Forestry Innovation and Housing Solutions
- COFI’s Kim Haakstad: This support comes at a critical moment for forestry workers, communities, and companies
- Alberta Softwood Lumber Trade Council’s Jason Krips: Is encouraged to see the federal government recognize the importance of Canada’s forest sector
- BC Lumber Trade Council’s Kurt Niquidet: Resolving the lumber dispute with the US must remain the top trade priority
- United Steelworkers’ Jeff Bromley: United Steelworkers union welcomes federal softwood announcement, calls for urgent follow-through to protect jobs and communities