Home > LOCAL NEWS > St. Stephen mayor and other border mayors urge unity in face of tariffs

St. Stephen mayor and other border mayors urge unity in face of tariffs

By Brian Owens, The Courier 

St. Stephen Mayor Allan MacEachern has joined an alliance of mayors from Canadian border towns to coordinate their response to sweeping 25 per cent tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump.

MacEachern was one of the first to join the group of more than 20 mayors set up by Drew Dilkins, mayor of Windsor, Ont.

“It’s about staying united and sharing our concerns,” said MacEachern.

There is not much that municipal governments can do directly to respond to the tariffs, said MacEachern.

“We don’t have a budget line in our toolbox to deal with this.”

But the mayors are taking advantage of their relationship with their American counterparts across the border. MacEachern has already spoken with Calais Mayor Marcia Rogers to discuss how the tariffs will affect both communities. Rogers will be raising the issue with Maine’s Republican Senator Susan Collins.

“They are also concerned,” said MacEachern  “They know this is not going to be good for our cross-border relationship.”

Trump’s tariffs are expected to hit New Brunswick hard, Herb Emery, an economist at the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton, told The Courier.

The province is one of the most likely to be affected because it is highly dependent on U.S. markets for its exports of oil and gas, forest products, food, and seafood. The provincial government estimates that as many as 6,000 jobs may be at risk.

“There’s going to be a pretty big impact all round,” said Emery.

There will likely be knock-on effects as well, Emery warns. The ongoing expansion of the Port of Saint John could be at risk, for example, if the tariffs disrupt the integration of supply chains across the continent. And the Canadian dollar is expected to fall – perhaps to as low as 50¢ against the US dollar.

“It will make everything more expensive and we will all have less purchasing power,” he said.

MacEachern urged Canadians to be united in response to the tariffs, remembering that people will be hurt by them all across the country. That means continuing to shop local as much as possible, and stepping up those efforts if you can.

“Do your best to support our own, because they’re going to need it,” he said.

He hopes, however, that the tariff fight will not permanently damage the good relationship the community has always had with its neighbours across the border.

“I hope we can continue to be allies and not create these divisions,” he said. “Our American friends are still our friends, but there are certain things we need to do as a country and community to deal with these tariffs.”

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