The members of the House of Commons have unanimously supported a motion calling on the government to immediately implement measures to assist small and medium-sized enterprises in the manufacturing sector that have been severely affected by U.S. tariffs on steel, aluminum, and copper products.
The motion, which was put forward by the Bloc Québécois, includes proposed measures such as direct support for vulnerable businesses, as well as a wage-subsidy program to prevent layoffs and preserve relationships with skilled labour, until a trade agreement with the United States is agreed upon.
“I am delighted that our initiative has received favourable support from Parliament – not for partisan reasons, but because the gravity of the problem our economy is currently facing calls for urgent action that transcends political affiliation, and falls more within our political responsibility toward the public – and, more specifically here, toward the entire Quebec manufacturing sector, and the thousands of workers who depend on it for their livelihoods ,” said Beauharnois-Salaberry-Soulanges-Huntingdon MP Claude DeBellefeuille.
She suggests that a new method for calculating U.S. tariffs is hitting Quebec hard, as many products that were protected by the USMCA trade agreement are now subject to tariffs of up to 25 per cent. According to a study by Desjardins, up to one-quarter of exports to the United States are affected by this new tariff, and Quebec businesses are among the most affected. DeBellefeuille is concerned that fewer U.S. companies will order Quebec products in the future, leading to a surge in closures and layoffs if direct aid measures are not quickly put in place.
DeBellefeuille said that along with SME’s, the forestry industry will also need support. “We are ready to collaborate to ensure that the measures demanded by the industry are implemented quickly so we can weather the crisis by preserving our businesses – small, medium, and large – until a satisfactory trade agreement with the United States is restored,” she concluded.