Senator Martin: I was going to ask about what exactly has happened in our exchange with the United States because, if you recall, I had quoted Katherine Tai, the U.S. trade representative, who told the U.S. Senate Finance Committee earlier this year:

In order to have an agreement and in order to have a negotiation, you need to have a partner. And thus far, the Canadians have not expressed interest in engaging.

I’m glad to hear that Minister Ng is down in the U.S., but I would like to ask you, leader, if you could report back to our chamber the results from that meeting. And specifically on this issue of softwood lumber, what will be happening to alleviate the issues that we’re facing today? Doubling tariffs is just really concerning for the industry and all of us.

Hon. Yonah Martin (Deputy Leader of the Opposition): Honourable senators, my question is also for the government leader in the Senate and on a question that I’ve been asking repeatedly as well. The leader may remember that during a Question Period in May, I raised plans brought forward by the U.S. Department of Commerce to increase its tariffs on softwood lumber imports from Canada in November.

Last week, a few days after a face-to-face meeting finally took place between the Prime Minister and President Biden, the U.S. went ahead and doubled the tariffs from 8.99% to 17.9%. This is absolutely terrible news for the forestry sector in my province of B.C. and, indeed, across Canada.

Leader, I have raised the concerns of B.C.’s forestry sector and the need for a softwood lumber agreement with the United States in this place many times. By now, it’s sadly clear that this industry is just not a priority for the Trudeau government. Simply, why not?