Conservative MP calls for 'full details' of failed Canada-U.S. trade deal to be released

In a letter to Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc, Conservative MP Shuvaloy Majumdar urged the government to release "the full details" of the proposed Canada-U.S. trade deal that was on the table before talks collapsed on Friday.

Shuvaloy Majumdar says releasing the details will let Canadians 'debate and discuss the way forward'

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The Conservative Party is urging Prime Minister Mark Carney's government to release "the full details" of the proposed Canada-U.S. trade deal that was on the table before negotiations collapsed late on Friday.

Conservative MP Shuvaloy Majumdar, the party's shadow minister for Canada-U.S. relations, said in a letter to Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc on Sunday that the Conservatives aren't asking for "negotiating secrets."

But the party is seeking information that Ottawa and Washington already know, Majumdar said. "This information will allow Canadians to debate and discuss the way forward as a country."

Fifty per cent U.S. tariffs on about $28 billion worth of Canadian goods came into effect early on Saturday after extended trade negotiations between the two countries fell apart.

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Prime Minister Mark Carney told reporters on Saturday that Canadian negotiators decided to walk away from the talks after the United States had made what he said were unacceptable demands.

That included "efforts to restrict our ability to have other trade deals," Carney said.

"We were not prepared to compromise Canada's sovereignty or to undermine our key industries," he said, adding that his government would impose "dollar-for-dollar" tariffs on U.S. goods, starting Sept. 8.

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said the talks failed after "new demands and walk backs of other commitments by Canada."

The U.S. "offer would have led to supply chain co-ordination on aerospace, complementary actions to address unfair trade practices, critical minerals co-operation, increased enforcement against imports produced with forced labour and the announcement of formal U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement negotiations," he said in a statement early Saturday.

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Exact details not yet released

But neither government has released the exact details of the deal that was being negotiated.

Despite that, Carney's decision to walk away from the talks appears to have garnered widespread support in Canada, including from provincial leaders like Ontario Premier Doug Ford and B.C. Premier David Eby.

Many also have backed Carney's plans to impose reciprocal tariffs on the U.S. next month.

There is "anxiety" among Canadians for what the escalating trade dispute means for the economy and their daily lives, said David Coletto, founder and CEO of the Abacus Data polling firm.

But there is also a sense that "we're not going to let Donald Trump bully us," Coletto told CBC News in an interview Sunday. "And I think most Canadians still feel good about what the prime minister said yesterday and now are going to wait to see what comes next."

Opposition party leaders have also said Canada should remain united in the face of Trump's tariffs.

"Canada cannot accept one-sided tariffs that will deindustrialize our country. Nor can we accept a bad deal. Instead, we must continue the fight for tariff-free trade," Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poilievre said in a social media post Saturday morning.

Poilievre said he would seek a call with Carney "to discuss what we can do to fight for our workers, businesses and economy."

Asked by reporters on Saturday if he would brief opposition leaders on the trade situation, Carney said that would likely happen Monday afternoon or Tuesday morning.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jillian Kestler-D'Amours is a senior writer at CBC based in Montreal. You can reach her at jillian.kestler-d.amours@cbc.ca.