On the second day of the fall legislative session, the Saskatchewan NDP introduced an emergency motion relating to tariffs on Canadian canola.
Party Leader Carla Beck motioned that Premier Scott Moe immediately call on Ottawa to remove its tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, as they are believed to have prompted China’s reciprocal tariffs on canola seed, meal, oil, seafood, and pork.
Trade Minister Warren Kaeding responded that Moe has been doing exactly that for over a year via various overseas trade missions, discussions with federal ministers, and even a letter to Ottawa back in September.
Moe himself retorted that the Opposition obviously did not read Wednesday’s throne speech, as it mentioned trade relations with China specific to EVs and canola. Later in the debate, Moe nearly repeated the NDP’s requested phrase word for word.
“This government’s stance, that has been solid from day one, (is that) we need to remove the EV tariffs so we can remove the canola tariffs, the pulse tariffs and the pork tariffs that are having an impact on Saskatchewan families.”
Despite this, the NDP still put forward the emergency motion urging the Premier to ‘quit flip-flopping’ and demand Ottawa scrap the EV tariffs.
“What we need right now is for both sides of this house to clearly and unequivocally state that we want to see those EV tariffs scrapped so we can provide some certainty for producers,” Beck stated.
Minister Kaeding amended her emergency motion to commend the Premier for his recent efforts on the trade front, and it was carried with a vote of 33-24.
Question Period also touched on topics such as healthcare and affordability.
The Official Opposition began the session by asking the government where its affordability measures were in Wednesday’s Throne Speech.
Beck stated that according to Statistics Canada, Saskatchewan families were hit with the largest increase to food prices in August among the provinces. Costs jumped 4.9 per cent year-over-year, above the 3.8 per cent national average.
Moe acknowledged increasing inflation at the grocery store and the pressure it is putting on families; however, he maintained that the theme of this year’s throne speech is ‘Strong, Safe, and Secure.’ No mention of additional affordability measures was made.
A release from the NDP published after Question Period states that cutting the tax on groceries would save Saskatchewan families $25 million annually.
