Ontario is preparing to launch a $75-million ad campaign to fight back against tariffs on Canadian goods.
The ad features a 1987 speech from then-President Ronald Reagan, who spoke against protectionism and tariffs.
Premier Doug Ford says the ads will air on almost every U.S. television network.
“We’re going to repeat that message to every Republican district there is, right across the entire country,” says Ford.
“And we’re just going to speak the truth. But you know, that ad, it’s not a nasty ad. It’s actually just very factual, and coming from a person like Ronald Reagan, every Republican is going to identify that voice.”
Ford considers Reagan the best United States president ever.
The Premier continues to keep tariffs and trade the number one issue impacting the province.
Ford’s government has been in office for over 200 days and has brought forward several pieces of legislation, all aimed at countering the impact of the tariffs.
It has included nearly $30 billion in immediate support for trade and tariff-impacted workers and businesses, and a $1 billion Protect Ontario financing program to assist businesses stay afloat.
Another billion had been added to a Skills Development Fund to support retraining programs.
Ford has also signed agreements with 10 provinces and territories to advance internal free trade.
Ford says expect more policy decisions intended to remove the bureaucracy that hinders development and production.
“If we want to be more competitive. If we want to be more resilient and more self-reliant, we have to fix the plumbing of Ontario’s economy. We need full-scale, permanent reform right across the board,” says Ford.
“We want to give businesses the certainty they need to invest, and we won’t stop there. Our government will continue to make progress, tearing down internal trade barriers by further expanding as-of-right labour mobility rules to more professions and activating mutual recognition with ready provinces.”
Ford is also anxious about getting the road construction to the Ring of Fire mining area.
Prime Minister Mark Carney is expected to reveal the next few projects of national importance within the next month.
Ford says Carney has assured him that the Ring of Fire will get federal support.
“He’s promised to get things built, big things built. There’s no better way to do so than by unleashing the full economic potential of critical minerals in the Ring of Fire. Folks, that will bring $22 billion added to Canada’s economy, 70,000 new jobs, just for the beginning.”
MPPs return to the Ontario legislature next week.
