B.C. planning legislation that could toll trucks travelling to Alaska, Eby says
Premier says tolls may not be put in place but that Canada must not let up until tariffs are taken off table
British Columbia is hitting back at economic threats from the United States by introducing tools to impose fees on U.S. truck traffic travelling through the province on the way to Alaska.
Premier David Eby said the tolls may not be used, but warned that Canada needs to have tools available to fight the threat of tariffs coming from President Donald Trump until he backs down from his plans altogether.
Eby made the announcement on the lawn of the Legislative Assembly building in Victoria, which had been draped with a large Canadian flag, while members of his party chanted "Canada" in the background.
Eby said he was responding to an "unprecedented threat" from the United States, which he characterized as U.S. President Donald Trump wanting to "erase our border."
"He wants to annex Canada and turn us into the 51st state," Eby said. "That is a threat."
The premier said he was unmoved by news that had come just moments earlier that 25 per cent tariffs on some Canadian goods sold into the United States had once again been placed on pause, this time until April 2, saying B.C. and Canada should not let up until the threat was removed altogether.
"It's all a deliberate tactic to weaken our resolve, and it will not work," he said.
"This is unacceptable, and we're going to ensure that the Americans understand how pissed off we are, how unified we are, how committed we are to working as a country to stand up for each other," Eby said. "And I say we don't let up until the president takes the threat off the table."
Eby said that legislation will be introduced in the coming days, allowing the province to levy fees onto commercial trucks moving through the province to and from Alaska.
The premier says he would also be introducing legislation giving the province the ability to remove interprovincial trade barriers between provinces and territories and mandating that low-carbon fuels added to gasoline and diesel be produced in Canada.
He also reiterated actions the province has already taken, including removing alcohol from Republican-leaning states from B.C. Liquor Store shelves, de-prioritizing U.S. contractors on government contract bids, and fast-tracking the process through which energy and resource projects are vetted for approval in order to improve the province's self-reliance and trade relationships with other nations.
Eby says the tariffs imposed by Trump are a profound mistake and are hurting families on both sides of the border, and his team is working hard to ensure the province comes out stronger on the other side.
"Trump thinks he can bring us to our knees by threatening tariffs. Well, what he is seeing is that Canadians are standing tall [with] one voice."
How would the fees work?
Eby did not share the details of how the new legislation will work.
He also did not share information on the practicalities surrounding the plan to specifically fine commercial truck traffic through the United States, saying it was still early days.
"It will not be implemented immediately but we will have it available if required," he said when pressed on how the province would see the legislation working on the ground.
In Nova Scotia, Premier Tim Houston has doubled the cost of tolls at the Cobequid Pass for commercial vehicles from the United States. But that's an area which already has checks and fines in place.
B.C., by contrast, does not have similar checkpoints, particularly along the Alaska Highway, which connects Alaska to Washington State through B.C. and Yukon.
Speaking to CBC News earlier in the day, Yukon premier Ranj Pillai said he'd heard from many of his constituents interested in imposing similar restrictions on U.S. truck traffic but pointed out it may be easier said than done, as it would require new infrastructure, such as toll booths and new personnel to staff it.
Eby said details of his plan would be revealed in the "coming days."
What could the impact be?
The Alaska Highway is, in fact, a Canadian one. With its origin point in Dawson Creek, B.C., it extends more than 2,000 kilometres through Whitehorse, before ending just southeast of Fairbanks, Alaska.
It was built in the Second World War by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers after the bombing of Pearl Harbour as a way to ensure the United States had land access to Alaska in order to serve as a defence against Pacific incursions. It was funded by the United States, with Canadian leaders allowing the build on the condition that it be turned over to Canada following the war.
The highway remains a popular tourist route and the only way for goods shipped by truck to reach Alaska.
Pillai has also pointed out that the U.S. has recently committed more than $40 million to improving the road on the Yukon side of the border, and expressed concern that any limitations on its use imposed by Canada could threaten that investment.
Then there's the question of retaliation: while U.S. truck traffic is currently able to travel through Canada to Alaska duty-free, the same agreement is in place for most Mexican goods coming to Canada the same way, said Andrea Bjorklund, a McGill University professor and an expert in international commercial law.
Having duties imposed on items going to and from Mexico could further harm the Canadian economy as Mexico is Canada's third-largest trading partner, including more than $2 billion worth of fruits and vegetables coming into the country every year.
Alaska, meanwhile, is not actually as dependent on trucks from Canada as some might think, with most of its goods arriving by sea rather than road.
In fact, according to numbers from the U.S. Bureau of Transport Statistics, shared by University of Alaska economics professor Mike Jones, trucking only represents about one per cent of cargo entering the state every year, with the bulk coming through the Port of Alaska in Anchorage, primarily from U.S. destinations.
That doesn't mean, though, that Alaskans wouldn't be impacted. The state does rely on Canada for some goods, including construction material and, potentially, fuel, as local sources run out. Those living in border communities also use Yukon as a source of supplies, from groceries to health care.
To that end, Republican senator Cathy Giessel has advanced a joint resolution pushing the president to honour the trade relationship with both Canada and Mexico, proclaiming that the Alaska Legislature "opposes any restrictive trade measures that would harm the unique relationship betwen Canada and Alaska or negatively affect our integrated economies."
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With files from the Canadian Press