President Donald Trump is going “above and beyond” in the softwood lumber war, British Columbia Forest Minister Ravi Parmar said of Canada’s trade-war-battered industry.
“When the president says he doesn’t need Canada’s trees, he should go talk to homebuilders,” Parmar told POLITICO after U.S. tariffs came into effect this week — the latest assault in a decades-old dispute.
In response, Ottawa announced C$700 million in new financial support for the sector. Parmar said the new loan package is “critical” to protecting Canadian forestry jobs.
“British Columbia is the second-largest exporter of softwood lumber in the world, and our forest sector is the backbone of hundreds of communities across our province,” Parmar said, adding that the money needs to flow “as soon as possible” to businesses.
