REGINA, Sask. — For Regina Mayor Chad Bachynski, the biggest concern surrounding tariffs isn't just what they are doing today, but the uncertainty over what could come next.
During an interview on Wednesday, Bachynski said there is worry about the uncertainty of tariffs, especially for businesses.
“That’s where you see businesses not making investments. They want to wait and see what’s going to happen, so they’re taking a more cautious approach to investment. That’s probably the biggest concern.”
Bachynski said a concerted effort between Canadians is needed for business support during this uncertainty.
“Make sure we’re supporting each other and supporting locals, and really looking at how we can help our economy within our own nation. As a city, that’s what we’re going to do as well.”
While supporting local businesses is important, Bachynski believes consumer choice makes it more influential.
“There is a bigger impact when people are given the choice, and Canadians are choosing Canadian products. I think that sends a bigger signal. Instead of one person or a government making the choice for residents and making a political statement.”
In terms of the city's purchasing from the U.S., Bachynski said the impact is very minimal.
“It’s quite a small percentage — less than one per cent. But it’s primarily around software purchases, such as Microsoft products, where there are things we actually have to procure from the United States.”
That small percentage was consistent even before tariffs were implemented, noted Bachynski.
But the weight of tariffs could come into play for future city budgets.
“Based on the data we have right now, I think we’ll see over time.”
He added, “we will learn more about what suppliers and businesses may be impacted and how that may impact our procurement.”
On the tourism side, though, Bachynski has no worries about Americans changing their minds about coming to Canada.
“I think there’s more concern among Americans about Canadians travelling to the U.S. than the other way around. What I’ve heard is that Canadians are choosing to travel within Canada.”
Whatever happens next in the tariff saga, Bachynski feels everyone is tired of it, like him.
“It's exhausting. I think everybody is tired of it. I'm tired of it. I think everybody's tired of talking about this.”
In an ideal scenario, Bachynski is hopeful the two countries can go back to strong relations.
“Canada and the U.S. would leverage each other’s economies for the betterment of all our residents. But unfortunately, that’s not what this Trump administration seems to be interested in. Hopefully, we can get back to that at some point.”
