Near ‘catastrophic’: How Windsor’s mayor says tariffs could hit

Windsor, Ont., Mayor Drew Dilkens says tariffs could be near 'catastrophic' for his city and have a dramatic impact on the supply chain.

The mayor of the border city of Windsor, Ont., says the potential for steep U.S. tariffs on Canadian goods could have a near “catastrophic” impact on the economy and jobs.

Mayor Drew Dilkens told The West Block’s Mercedes Stephenson that such tariffs, which U.S. President Donald Trump has delayed until March, would impact many sectors important to his city, including automotive.

“We’re on the precipice of being catastrophic,” he said.

“Twenty-five per cent for us would certainly mean that the price of vehicles would go up. People would simply defer spending 25 per cent more for the price of a vehicle waiting for some more certainty. It may make imports more attractive, quite frankly.”

He went on to explain that shift away from Canadian products, and people waiting for more certainty, would then cascade through the supply chain starting with auto manufacturers who would adjust their inventory due to reduced sales, and result in layoffs in automotive factors.

Then, the auto parts sector would need fewer people to make less parts for fewer cars, leading to more job cuts.

It would even trickle down, Dilkens said, to a worker at Tim Hortons being laid off as people put away money for “weathering the storm,” and cut down on spending.

Dilkens said the changes to the supply chain would happen quickly, suggesting Canadians would see impacts in the span of weeks rather than months.