A northern leader is calling on the province to take immediate action to protect Ontario’s forestry sector in the wake of new U.S. tariffs on Canadian lumber.
Mushkegowuk-James Bay MPP Guy Bourgouin said the impact of the tariffs imposed by U.S. president Donald Trump could be devastating for northern communities that depend on the industry.
“The lumber industry is vital to Ontario’s economy,” Bourgouin said in a release issued Tuesday (July 29).
“The anti-dumping tariffs imposed by Trump will devastate our lumber industry. Condemning Trump’s actions isn’t enough. We saw it with the auto sector, with steel, and now with lumber — the Premier’s ‘wait and see’ approach is leaving thousands of workers vulnerable to layoffs.”
Bourgouin criticized the Ford government for failing to present a concrete strategy, calling their approach “an afterthought” for northern Ontario’s economy.
He said the NDP is pushing for a “buy it here, build it here” policy that would see governments prioritize Ontario lumber for building projects, including homes and public infrastructure.
Bourgouin’s call comes after Ontario NDP leader Marit Stiles visited the Domtar lumber plant in Thunder Bay earlier this month. Workers there told Stiles the facility has the capacity to produce enough lumber to build 85,000 homes every year.
The party argues that using Ontario-produced wood could tackle multiple challenges at once, safeguarding forestry jobs, boosting local economies, and addressing the province’s housing shortage with “made-in-Ontario” solutions.
Stiles and the NDP are urging both the federal and provincial governments to work together on a plan that would not only protect the sector from the impact of U.S. tariffs but also expand the use of Ontario lumber in construction.