Premier David Eby said measures are needed to ensure B.C. is never again “at the whim of one person in the White House.”
In a move the official Opposition says is a “slippery slope,” the NDP has introduced emergency legislation giving it broad powers to reduce interprovincial trade barriers, put tolls on bridges and ferries, and unilaterally change any legislation relating to B.C.’s economy.
Premier David Eby told reporters in Victoria that the government needs to be able to respond quickly to the tariffs and annexation threats levelled by U.S. President Donald Trump and echoed former prime minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau in saying that living next to the U.S. is like “sleeping next to an elephant.” He said that right now “the beast is coming at us full-speed.”
“One thing is clear for British Columbia, we can never leave ourselves again to be in the position of being at the whim of one person in the White House,” said Eby. “We have to move faster, and we have to be incredibly nimble to respond to the escalating situation.”
Conservative Leader John Rustad said that while he is supportive of the government’s desire to move quickly in responding to threats from the U.S., the breadth of the powers the legislation gives the NDP is troubling.
“There’s no question that we need to be able to take steps. However, what I’m very concerned about is this bill actually enables the government to implement tolls and road fees anywhere in the province, including ferries, something that, quite frankly, I find very, very dangerous,” said Rustad.
Rustad’s concerns aren’t shared by the business community, with both the Business Council of B.C. and the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade coming out strongly in support of the legislation.
As for the emergency powers, Jones said Canada currently finds itself in an “unusual situation” and that how the government uses them needs to be watched carefully. She said she doesn’t want them extended past their current expiry date unless absolutely necessary.
Former B.C. attorney general Mike de Jong said he has few qualms with the intent behind the NDP’s legislation but argued there is little need to bypass the democratic process in order to respond to Canada’s new adversary in the White House.
He pointed out that there is a sunset clause of May 2027, meaning the legislation isn’t permanent, and that it simply gives the government more flexibility to respond, although he did acknowledge there should be more safeguards around when the government can use the legislation.
“The governments of Canada have to be able to respond, and they’re going to have to be much more nimble than they have been before in international relations. It’s the way this works, is that they hit us, we hit back. They hit us harder. We hit back just as hard. Tit for tat,” said Telford.