Manitoba premier says he’s looking for ways to ban U.S. companies from bids

The Manitoba government is looking for ways to forestall companies successful the United States from bidding connected provincial contracts arsenic different retaliatory measurement against tariffs connected Canadian goods threatened by U.S. President Donald Trump.

Cabinet ministers whose portfolios are linked to the system person been tasked with reviewing the provincial government’s procurement procedures with an oculus to restricting bids from southbound of the border, Premier Wab Kinew said Monday.

“We person nary quarrel with the American people. These are our friends. These are our relatives,” Kinew said.

“But if their president is trying to instrumentality nutrient our of our mouths, is trying to instrumentality jobs retired of our province, past we person to basal up for ourselves.”

Kinew made the remarks astatine the commencement of a gathering with members of his precocious established U.S. Trade Council — a radical that includes representatives of concern and labour groups arsenic good arsenic idiosyncratic employers.

The gathering came a time after Manitoba and different provinces announced plans to propulsion U.S. liquor products from store shelves. Kinew promised further measures aboriginal this week, each successful effect to Trump’s program to enforce wide tariffs connected Canadian goods, acceptable to statesman Tuesday.

Quebec Premier Francois Legault has besides talked astir restricting American entree to nationalist contracts, portion Ontario Premier Doug Ford said Monday his state volition terminate a 100-million-dollar declaration with Elon Musk’s SpaceX to present high-speed net to distant areas.

Kinew invited Indigenous leaders to beryllium portion of Monday’s meeting, saying much than commercialized is astatine stake.

Trending Now

“It’s wide that the existent concern is overmuch much than conscionable a commercialized dispute. This is besides an onslaught connected Canadian sovereignty. And arsenic a effect of that being brought guardant by the American president, I deliberation that it’s important that we person a broader treatment than conscionable exclusively commercialized issues and economical issues,” Kinew said.