Conservative MP warns Liberal government is asleep at the wheel on US trade negotiations

CALGARY — Conservative MP Shuvaloy Majumdar has accused Prime Minister Mark Carney’s Liberal government of failing to aggressively engage the United States on trade issues, arguing Carney’s approach leaves Canadian workers exposed as uncertainty continues over the situation regarding North American trade relations.On a recent episode of CBC’s Power & Politics, host David Cochrane challenged the notion that Canada was responsible for delays in reaching agreements with the Trump administration, arguing that it was in fact the United States, who had been the primary source of instability in recent negotiations.Cochrane pointed to a recent US court decision by a federal judge criticizing a lawsuit filed by President Donald Trump against the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) over the leak of Trump’s tax returns.Judge Kathleen Williams ruled that the case was brought for an "improper purpose" and appeared designed to use the courts to legitimize a deal benefiting Trump and his allies.“This is not a normal administration that any government is dealing with globally,” Cochrane said, noting that multiple international agreements involving the Trump administration have been altered or renegotiated.“They seem to be the problem on a global level, so why would it be Canada that is the problem here?”.Majumdar rejected the premise, arguing Canada has failed to demonstrate the urgency needed to protect its economic interests, saying that Canada was insufficiently engaged in the previous week's public hearing on the US Trade Representative's forced-labor tariff review process, noting Ottawa submitted written comments while representatives from Mexico and Peru appeared in person at the public hearings.“Here's a major tariff issue on supply chains for forced labor products that Canada barely wrote a note about and submitted an incomplete note rather than sending an actual representative like the Mexicans and the Peruvians did,” the Calgary Heritage MP said, adding Ottawa has spent too much time pursuing other international priorities while neglecting key discussions with the Americans."We have seen a Liberal minister after Liberal minister from industry to heritage go to Beijing to negotiate God knows what, instead of going to Houston, Florida, New York, Los Angeles," Majumdar said.His comments come as questions continue to be raised over Ottawa’s handling of Canada-US relations, including the recent controversy involving negotiations around the opening of the Gordie Howe International Bridge.So far, federal officials have refused to release the full details of a last-minute agreement reached with Washington that cleared the way for the bridge to open on July 27 after weeks of delays.Under the original 2012 agreement, Canada was expected to collect all toll revenues until construction costs were recovered..Carney declines to release Gordie Howe bridge deal after agreeing to share toll revenues with US .The new arrangement will see 50% of net profits directed to a 15-year economic development fund, though the federal government has released few details about how the fund will operate or how net profits will be calculated.Majumdar said Ottawa should instead focus on strengthening Canada's economic position before entering negotiations with the US.Among the measures he proposed were creating a strategic reserve of NATO-grade critical minerals, removing what he described as anti-development legislation affecting pipelines and shipping, eliminating the industrial carbon tax and accelerating approvals for major resource projects."We are talking about trillions of dollars of Canadian commodity strength that should be shovel-ready and approved within six months," Majumdar said.He contrasted Canada's approach with Mexico's efforts to engage Washington on issues ranging from Chinese imports to border security."We're allowing America and Mexico to come to terms on what a North American deal should look like and then impose that on Canada," he said."We have seen a wait-and-see approach from Ottawa as opposed to a build-strength-and-engage approach that Conservatives are offering."

Conservative MP warns Liberal government is asleep at the wheel on US trade negotiations

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