Pierre Poilievre asks Carney to recall Parliament to scrutinize collapsed Trump trade talks

“Canadians elect Parliament to defend their interests and decide the hard questions. Those questions can no longer wait. The Official Opposition has a duty to ask questions and hold the government to account. That is why I write to ask you to reconvene Parliament without delay.”

Of the main questions Poilievre writes in his letter, which he says deserve to be answered, are what the exact text of the proposed trade deal was, what Carney’s plan is to support industries like steel and aluminum still dealing with U.S. tariffs, and what he says is the “true cost to Canadian families” when it comes to the prime minister’s plan to retaliate. 

“You stated that you would impose dollar-for-dollar tariff retaliation and that these ‘tariffs are taxes,’” wrote Poilievre, as he pointed to issues like food inflation and household debt. 

“How will you avoid worsening this inflation? Where will the revenues be directed?”

During a press conference on Saturday, Carney said his government was planning to impose “dollar-for-dollar” tariffs starting Sept. 8, in response to U.S. President Donald Trump moving ahead with his plan to hit Canada with 50 per cent tariffs on $28 billion worth of goods, which kicked in after weeks of trade talks fell apart late Friday. 

Avoiding those levies while also securing some relief for existing U.S. tariffs on steel, aluminum, autos and lumber and getting the Trump administration to engage on renewing CUSMA was at the heart of what Canada wanted out of the three weeks spent in intense negotiations with Washington before the talks collapsed.  

While Poilievre in his initial statement over the weekend expressed disappointment in the U.S. decision to hit Canada with “further unjustified tariffs,” one of his most high-profile MPs rejected the prime minister’s decision to retaliate. 

Jamil Jivani, an Ontario Conservative MP, told the Star on Saturday he was concerned about “accelerating conflict” with the U.S., saying he believes Carney has not managed or prioritized the relationship with Canada’s closest neighbour the way he should. 

“You can say that you don’t want to sign a deal … without accelerating conflict between the two countries.” 

“Why did you not spend more time and energy to get this done because it is important to people, and two, even if you didn’t want to sign an agreement (Friday), why are you accelerating conflict?” 

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has also warned that applying counter-tariffs brings economic pain to businesses on both sides of the border and called on Carney to resume talks as soon as possible. Meanwhile, Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe says he supports the prime minister’s decision to hit back. 

Carney on Saturday outlined a list of demands that he says the Trump administration put on Canada that led to his decision to end negotiations, from seeking to limit the country’s ability to strike new trade deals and wanting to exempt medium-and-heavy duty trucks from auto tariff relief to taking aim at the rules for French-language content online. 

Since then, the Conservatives, including the party’s critic for Canada-U.S. trade, Shuv Majumdar, have circulated a letter that the Calgary MP penned demanding that Carney release the text of the proposed deal. 

Over the weekend, Carney signalled that he planned to speak with Opposition leaders early this week. 

The House of Commons is set to resume on Sept. 21. 

With files from Mark Ramzy.