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Prime Minister Mark Carney\u2019s office has released plans for several measures designed to help businesses affected by the trade war with the United States. The statement begins: \u201cThe global trade landscape is rapidly changing, as the United States fundamentally transforms all of its trading relationships. The effect is profound \u2013 displacing workers, disrupting supply chains, forcing companies to rethink where they source their materials and products, and causing uncertainty that is curbing investment. Canada has the best deal of any U.S. trading partner \u2013 yet we cannot rely on our most important trade relationship as we once did. We must build our strength at home. \u201d<\/p>\n
Initiatives relevant to our sector include:<\/p>\n
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- The government will introduce a new reskilling package for up to 50,000 workers, make Employment Insurance more flexible and with extended benefits, and launch a new digital jobs and training platform with private-sector partners to connect Canadians more quickly to careers.<\/li>\n
- The government will invest $5\u00a0billion through a new fund with flexible terms to help firms in all sectors impacted by tariffs adapt, diversify, and grow, with support provided to industries by new Workforce Alliances to align training and workforce needs.<\/li>\n
- The government will introduce a new policy to ensure the federal government buys from Canadian suppliers, require local content when domestic suppliers are unavailable, extend this approach to all federal funding streams and Crown corporations, and provide a roadmap for provinces and municipalities to apply similar standards to their own procurement<\/li>\n
- The government will expand Business Development Bank of Canada loans for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to $5 million.<\/li>\n
- The government will expand support to SMEs to $1 billion over three years, with flexible terms, and increase new non-repayable contributions to eligible businesses impacted by tariffs across all affected sectors.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n