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CTV News
38 minutes ago
- CTV News
Canada in ‘no man's land' as new U.S. tariffs take effect, former foreign minister warns
Prime Minister Mark Carney listens as U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a group photo at the G7 Summit, Monday, June 16, 2025, in Kananaskis, Canada. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein) Canada is bracing for further tension in its trade relationship with the United States, after President Donald Trump imposed sweeping new tariffs. 'This is bad news,' said former foreign affairs minister Peter MacKay in an interview with CTV News Channel Sunday. 'It's bad news for the markets. It's bad news for many sectors on both sides of the border. … There is a lot of impetus now to try to bring this to an end.' Trump hit Canadian goods with a 35-per-cent tariff on Friday—targeting products not compliant with the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement. The White House said the decision was made in response to Canada's 'failure to co-operate' on stemming fentanyl imports and Ottawa's retaliatory duties. Trump also introduced 50-per-cent tariffs on semi-finished copper products and maintained existing duties on Canadian steel, aluminum and automobiles. Dominic LeBlanc, Canada's trade minister, said Sunday he expects Prime Minister Mark Carney and Trump to speak 'over the next number of days' in a renewed effort to de-escalate the dispute. MacKay, meanwhile, says high-level talks are essential, especially given Trump's direct involvement. 'Having personal discussions with our prime minister … is probably the only way we are going to see this trade agreement finally get done,' he said. MacKay warned that while some 75 per cent of goods crossing the border remain tariff-free, critical sectors like steel, aluminum, copper and autos are facing sharp new costs. He also cautioned that the trade war risks turning personal. 'We've seen what happens, as recently as with the former Prime Minister Trudeau, when it does get personal,' he said. 'The Canadian economy ultimately and quickly pays a price.' Trump signed the executive order late Thursday. The Aug. 1 target date floated for a potential deal passed without progress, and there is still no clear timeline for resolution. MacKay described this current phase as 'no man's land.' 'We are not even where we used to be,' he said. 'Let's just hope that (Trump) doesn't go wildly off in all directions on the eve of getting to some sort of a finish line.' With files from the Canadian Press
CBC
39 minutes ago
- CBC
Pint-sized ice cream entrepreneur in P.E.I. tasting sweet success at Scooper's Dairy Bar
Inside a multicoloured minibarn at the Burdenell Riding Stables in eastern Prince Edward Island, an 11-year-old girl is serving up an ice-cold lesson in entrepreneurship. For two years now, Roya Cooper has run the aptly named Scooper's Dairy Bar. "We always liked ice-cream, and I wanted to start my own business," Roya said. And so it was that with some help from her parents, a little inspiration from the competition and a lot of paint that Scooper's was born. A pink, purple and blue fence surrounds the barn like an ice cream corral. The barn itself is painted like the rainbow to represent the variety of flavours the dairy bar serves, said Roya. "Death by chocolate, or chocolate chip cookie dough is the most [popular]." Sales are pretty good. Roya said she can sell about 30 cones of her most popular flavours each day. Some of the profit is eaten up by horseback riding and her personal snack habit. Serving up success Roya has one employee who's 17 years old. Mom and dad are never far away, and her big sister is helping at the family stable right next door. Managing the inventory and running the counter is all up to her. If she gets enough requests for a new flavour, she taps dad and he puts in an order. She's learned a few lessons during her time in the business. "You have to smile, you need to be good with money," she said. "You need to be very organized. You need to clean every single time. Wash your hands like a thousand times a day." The most difficult part is scooping the ice cream: "It gets pretty hard in the freezer. You have to have muscles." She gets the odd question from kids her own age — wondering why she's working at 11 years old. "I tell them they should do it," Roya said, adding that it's a lot of fun. "When the sun's shining and it's about Friday and Saturday and Sunday, those are the most busiest, funnest days." In the future, Roya said she wants to continue as an entrepreneur. In terms of university, she is split between a few options.
CBC
39 minutes ago
- CBC
Opponents of new gas plant accuse N.B. Power of trying to evade regulatory scrutiny
Social Sharing Advocates are raising concerns that N.B. Power is looking to shortcut the regulatory process and avoid public scrutiny of its proposed 400-megawatt gas plant. "It's an attempt to evade the regulatory process and that's unacceptable," said Green Leader David Coon. N.B. Power is required to get approval from the Energy and Utilities Board for capital projects costing more than $50 million, but are arguing that a $70-million transmission facility required for a new natural gas generating facility in the province's southeast should be excepted from that scrutiny. Normally, that would trigger a review of the entire project. Coon said it's clear the utility doesn't believe the independent EUB would see the economic argument for it. "It says to me they don't have much faith in the Energy and Utilities Board deciding that these expenditures would be in the economic interests of New Brunswickers given the alternatives," he said. "The alternatives are there. I mean, places from the city of Saint John to the state of Vermont are using large battery storage systems on the scale of hundreds of megawatts in the case of Vermont to provide peak power." N.B. Power's application makes the case that the structure of the deal to build and operate the plant and necessary infrastructure doesn't count as a traditional capital investment. The new plant will be owned and operated by ProEnergy, which will sell the power generated back to N.B. Power. Because the plant is being built by and will be wholly owned by ProEnergy, the project doesn't require hearings and board approval. WATCH | 'They have a right to see what's going on,' says critic calling for review: Opponents of new gas plant say N.B. Power is trying to evade public scrutiny 7 minutes ago However, the project also includes a $70-million switchyard that ProEnergy has agreed to build. By law, only N.B. Power can own transmission assets in the province, so once completed, it will be sold to the utility for a dollar. N.B. Power argues that since they aren't building it, the transfer shouldn't count as a capital project and should therefore be shielded from board review and the public hearings that come with it — even though it will show up as a $70-million asset in its capital structure, with the depreciation and liabilities that come with it. A spokesperson for N.B. Power said in a statement that the application is intended to get the EUB's opinion on how to treat these types of agreements. "This structure differs from N.B. Power building and operating a long-term asset, where we would assume all operational risks, ultimately borne by the ratepayer. This is a new type of agreement for NB Power, and we felt it was important to seek the NBEUB's opinion," Elizabeth Fraser said in an email. Fraser added that while a full EUB review would take longer, they believe the plant could still be ready by 2028. N.B. Power said previously that the plant is necessary to address the growing population and demand for energy in the province and to provide a backup to intermittent renewable power. The utility is also looking to add hundreds of megawatts of wind energy to its generation mix in coming years and says the plant will be a crucial part of ensuring it has the energy it needs when demand dictates. According to environmental assessment filings, work to prepare the site is intended to start as early as next year, with the plant coming online in 2028. ProEnergy's lead for the project previously told CBC that it's expected the project could result in a 250,000-tonne reduction in N.B. Power's greenhouse gas emissions as the plant would displace more polluting sources of power. Reduction claims need to be tested Moe Qureshi, the director of climate change research and policy at the Conservation Council of New Brunswick, said those claims need to be tested in the EUB's public hearing process to determine if the plant, or the deal, is in the best interest of New Brunswickers. "The EUB is the way to review that information to check if this is really the best choice for New Brunswick and, without that oversight, I think we're going to get into more problems rather than less," he said. "What if this costs us more down the road than what we think now? And I think if the ratepayers have to pay for this, they have a right to see what's going on." The EUB filing also provides more details about how ProEnergy will be paid for the facility. N.B. Power will pay for the fuel used to power the plant and purchase the power generated. But they will also make monthly "capacity payments" based on how much power the utility purchased versus what the facility could produce. Fraser said payments will be based on a "'pay for performance' model, meaning we are only subject to payments when the facility meets a high level of availability." N.B. Power's EUB filing states they expect the capacity payments will eclipse $50 million over the 25-year lifespan of the agreement. A pre-hearing conference is scheduled for Aug. 12, with hearing dates set for the beginning of September.
