Canadians know the value of standing together when it comes to unfair

trade actions. It matters to workers, families and communities across the country.

At the same time, we need to recognize that provinces feel the impacts of these measures differently.

In British Columbia , steel is the backbone of our housing and infrastructure , and of the major projects we’re delivering on to grow our economy. From the Broadway Subway and Surrey-Langley SkyTrain projects, to hospitals, schools and clean energy infrastructure, almost everything we’re building relies on timely and reliable access to steel at a fair price.

Thousands of people’s jobs depend on it, and so do the services people expect.

That’s why we are in discussions with the Government of Canada to raise alarms about new limits on imported rebar and other products, and their impacts to the projects British Columbians are counting on.

The reality is, we don’t produce steel in B.C., and, currently, it is too costly to get it here from Eastern Canada.

In addition, our national railways, and Eastern Canada’s mills alone, don’t have the capacity to deliver the steel we need at a reasonable cost that would allow us to move forward on our ambitious plans for housing, healthcare, education and major job-creating projects. The ongoing failure to get a stable and cost-effective supply of Canadian steel across the Rockies is also a direct threat to good paying jobs in British Columbia.

When projects stall, it isn’t just businesses that pay the price — it’s families waiting for homes, patients waiting for hospitals and communities waiting for the services they need.

For these reasons, we need to talk about manufacturing steel here in B.C.

But right now, we need to meet the moment. Canada’s trade measures have restricted supply for the businesses that depend on steel, which means higher costs, shortages and slower timelines.

It’s also important to remember that B.C. is not just a consumer of steel — we’re a key part of Canada’s steelmaking supply chain. Our metallurgical coal mines in the Kootenays are essential to producing steel in Canada and around the world. British Columbians deserve a fair shake.

My message to Ottawa is simple — B.C.’s growth is Canada’s growth. Forty per cent of the federal government’s major projects in the national interest are rightly located in British Columbia, and it’s clear that the path to prosperity lies in the West.

So, let’s keep working together. Let’s design a fair, but tough, trade response that doesn’t hurt Western Canadians — one that supports Canadian producers, protects Canadian workers and ensures provinces like B.C. can keep building the homes and infrastructure people are counting on.

For B.C., that means making sure construction companies can access the steel they need at a fair cost while we continue to support Canada’s steel producers. It also means looking for creative solutions — like a program that rebates

tariffs and exempts duty — so that national policy doesn’t unintentionally slow down our progress on housing and nation-building and trade-facilitating infrastructure.

This is what I mean by a Team Canada approach. We can defend our producers, stand up to unfair trade and at the same time make sure no part of the country is left behind. We can protect jobs at mills in Eastern Canada and for steel workers in B.C.

Because this isn’t just about steel. It’s about building a future where Canadians, from coast to coast, can prosper.

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