Photo credit: Toronto Star
Toronto city council has unanimously approved Mayor Olivia Chow’s plan to fight US tariffs, despite reservations expressed by some members that the measures were “performative”. It would do little to deter American trade aggression, according to them.
Toronto Star reports that in a speech, Chow accused US President Donald Trump of launching a “senseless” trade war against Canada that had upended relations between the two countries.
She said Trump’s attack on Canada had also awakened a “feeling of pride,” of “being Canadian,” and her response plan, which would bar US companies from bidding on city contracts, was an expression of that defiance.
Under the plan, the municipality will give preference to Canadian businesses by allowing only domestic companies to bid on competitive contracts under about $350,000 for goods and services, and less than $8.8 million for construction.
It will also allow the city to designate US-based suppliers ineligible to bid on competitive contracts, “when deemed in best interest of the city.” US companies would still be able to bid for municipal work if barring them would significantly increase costs to the city.
Some councillors are of the view that the mayor’s plan didn’t go far enough.
City staff told the council that Toronto does about $3 billion in procurement per year, and of that only about two to three per cent currently goes to contracts with US companies. The figure is lower than the 10 per cent the city as previously cited.
