LISTEN: Scott Moe talks tariffs, trade, CUSMA and Chappell Roan on Evan Bray Show

Saskatchewan’s premier says the province’s industries are largely protected from U.S. tariffs because of the North American free trade agreement known as CUSMA, but the Government of Saskatchewan is working with Ottawa to support the sectors that remain at risk.

Scott Moe joined guest host Tamara Cherry on the Evan Bray Show on Wednesday morning, just days after U.S. President Donald Trump rolled out 35 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods not protected under the agreement.

Read more:

• Saskatchewan exports still mostly tariff-free under CUSMA: Moe
• Saskatchewan NDP urges return of U.S. liquor ban in response to tariff hikes
• Carney to meet with cabinet, premiers to discuss latest U.S. tariffs

But while many industries are sheltered by the trade agreement, Moe also expressed concerns that American negotiators will try to add tariffs on CUSMA-compliant goods or pull out of the deal altogether.

Listen to the full interview with Moe, or read the transcript below:

The following questions and answers have been edited for length and clarity.

TAMARA CHERRY: Five months ago, the day after President Trump announced 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods and a 10 per cent levy on Canadian energy, you announced the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority would stop purchasing produced alcohol and halt sales of U.S. alcohol currently in stock to private retailers in the province. You also announced that goods and services procured by your government would make every effort to prioritize Canadian suppliers. You said that by taking those measures, you were taking a stand against something that was simply not right. But five months later, now, with 35 per cent tariffs, American liquor is back on our shelves and your government has rather quietly returned to its standard procurement processes. Why the shift?

SCOTT MOE: On our standard procurement practices, we did a pretty in-depth look. We very much are prioritizing Saskatchewan procurement and Saskatchewan companies, with well over 90 per cent of public procurement going to Saskatchewan companies. That’s just the standard order of business here in the province. As we move through this discussion with the United States, and as the United States, I think, not only is resetting their trade relationship with their North American partners, Mexico and Canada, but also resetting their trade relationship, largely, with many countries around the world, it’s important for us to realize first that we rely on free, fair, and open access to those markets. Second, we need to get to that space in a more solid form with our largest trading partner, the United States of America, and someone is going to have to take the early steps. What we’ve done in Saskatchewan, and I believe Alberta has done something similar, has taken some of those early steps. And now I think as we find our way through this discussion, we’ve also encouraged and and have spoken to the fact that maybe it’s time for Canada even to at least not add additional counter tariffs in this space, but to even consider removing some of the counter tariffs that are harmful to Canadian businesses and Saskatchewan businesses today. Largely, we are protected as long as (CUSMA) is in place.

Is the united approach that all the leaders in Canada were talking about back in March and supporting the counter-tariffs, no longer as important as it was back then?

MOE: I think we all want to get to the same place, which is free and fair access to the U.S. market, but also in that realm there’s going to be free and fair access to the Canadian market by American companies as well. I think, largely, the efforts and the landing spot are identical. There’s some discussion, and we’re impacted differently. The manufacturing sector might be impacted a little differently than what we produce here in Saskatchewan. We’re 95 per cent protected by (CUSMA). Should that change, then there’s a very different discussion that would need to happen. But currently (CUSMA) is in place, and we need to work alongside the federal government to support those industries that are being impacted by, I guess you call them the fentanyl tariffs.

We’ve heard a lot of of optimism from you lately, but I imagine this would mean precious little to the steelworkers whose industry is not covered by CUSMA, whose industry exports about $400 million of product to the U.S. every year. Are you, as I believe the NDP has suggested, downplaying the effects of these tariffs?

MOE: No, we’re working alongside the federal government and doing what we can to protect those very industries. I was on a call yesterday, actually, with the CEO of Orion Steel, which is an American company that just bought our largest steel manufacturer in Saskatchewan, and they see, in the medium to long term, a very bright future for the steel industry in Saskatchewan. In the meantime, while we go through a very challenging time, what we’ve done is pull forward a significant amount, 10 years, actually, of Crown procurement, to support the steel industry here in Saskatchewan. There are things that we can do, both federal and provincial, to support those industries that are being impacted by these fentanyl tariffs, but we also need to realize that we are largely protected. Agriculture, value-added agriculture, the mining sector, our energy and oil and gas sector – where oil is our largest-by-value export to the U.S. – those, those are protected by (CUSMA). Should that change, then it would be a very different conversation.

Do you not worry that American negotiators will try to put tariffs on CUSMA-compliant goods, or even pull out of CUSMA altogether, as some have suggested?

MOE: (I’ve) been worried about that for a long period of time.  I think the entirety of the investment business, and even all of us who work in industries in Saskatchewan, are concerned. That speaks to the uncertainty that this whole tariff discussion is imposing on the North American market, and I think each of us as North Americans. So yes, I worry about that every day, but we also need to understand where we are today, and I’ve been in touch with Dominic LeBlanc (the federal minister responsible for U.S. trade) often, and I think he is doing his level best to hammer out what is an acceptable deal for Canada moving forward. We’ve seen some deals come in the way of Japan and the European Union with blanket tariffs. Ironically, that makes Canadian products more affordable for American businesses, because we still are protected by that (CUSMA) agreement. We don’t want that to change.

You said we want to get to that fair and tariff-free trade environment, and that we may need to lead the way and back out of this counter-tariff discussion. Is that leading the way? Because when we look at conversations around the deals with the E.U., words that are being thrown around are that they’ve capitulated, and they are cowering under Trump.  

MOE: I think, for example, Mexico has not imposed one tariff and is arguably being treated in a little bit more of a favorable fashion than Canada is today. Each country is going to find its way in a little different manner, as we see a president who is ultimately trying to reset U.S. trade relations with the world. I think Canada is doing a relatively good job in navigating this path thus far, and I think the proof of that is that (CUSMA) is still in place. Should that change, then we have a significant issue in North America, likely not just in Canada, but in Mexico as well. It would be a tax on every North American product that we buy. As to where we want to get to in our Canadian relationship with the USA? Well, first we want to have a more advantageous access than Europe than Japan, and than any other country around the world. That makes Canadian products more competitive, and we don’t want to have any indirect fallout like we’re seeing, for example, with the Chinese counter tariffs on canola products and other products due to us aligning with the U.S. So it’s a delicate balance, and there are indirect and direct impacts from the relationship that we have with the United States.

Do you see any situation where you would support counter tariffs, even if that means potentially (putting a tariff) on our potash?

MOE: Not as long as the (CUSMA) agreement is being respected and in place. Should that not be the case, then there’s a very different conversation that’ll happen, I’m sure, between all provinces and the prime minister.

Why put U.S. alcohol back on the shelves?

MOE: That’s a step towards a free and fair trade environment. I would suggest that Canada might be considering something similar in some of the counter tariffs that we have in place that are, in many cases, harming Canadian businesses. I’ve talked to some industries that are feeling just that pressure, as are the U.S. businesses due to the tariffs that their president has put on the products that they’re purchasing.

The Globe and Mail reported last week that Australian canola is poised to take a sizable chunk of Canada’s market share in China. Is this worrisome to you? Are you bringing this to our federal government as an argument for reconsidering Canada’s 100 per cent tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles?

MOE: This is an issue that I brought up with the prime minister, as well as other ministers federally, and I’ve been watching closely the trade deal that China is attempting to sign with Australia, and what it will do is… it’ll start to shift canola flows around the world, and that’s why it’s so important for us. And credit to Prime Minister (Mark) Carney for elevating the credibility of Canada on the global stage. We currently have two ministers in Mexico, for example, and he himself, I think, is (meeting) maybe with 80 international leaders in a very short time of being prime minister. We need to have those relationships so that when material flows change around the world due to, for example, this type of relationship between China and Australia, we have those contacts in other areas of the world to flow Canadian canola into those areas, whether it’s oil, meal or seed. The international relations matter. We’ve always put it as a high priority provincially, but credit to Prime Minister Carney, he certainly has done the same at the national level, more than we’ve seen in a decade, so we’re happy to see that.

What is your pitch for Chappell Roan to do a show here in Saskatchewan, after she mentioned the province in a song?

MOE: She should come here. I’m sure many Oilers fans would certainly go to the concert as well, as they adopted one of her songs throughout the playoffs. I was hopeful, being an Oilers fan, that we could have heard it a few more times, but we weren’t able to listen. We’ve had many artists mention Saskatchewan over the last number of decades. Some spent time here, like Johnny Cash, for example, and others. We would hope that she would come to Saskatchewan, and most certainly, I think many would look forward to attending her concert.