Is property tax freeze just stalling a solution for N.B. homeowners?
Property tax assessments may be the same, but with discounts, tax rates can, in effect, vary by as much as 50 per cent in Moncton
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Yahoo
21 minutes ago
- Yahoo
World leaders will still talk trade at the G7. They ‘can't afford not to'
President Donald Trump and other heads of state are set to gather in Canada for the annual G7 summit just days after Israel's unprecedented strike on Iran. Ordinarily, such a development would dominate the high-level discussions, but this time around, world leaders will likely need to also focus on another pressing issue: trade. 'You can't afford not to talk about it, from any country's perspective,' said Josh Lipsky, chair of international economics at the Atlantic Council. It's less than a month until July 9, President Donald Trump's self-imposed deadline for when dozens of countries, including several present at the meeting, could face higher tariffs unless they ink trade deals that avert further escalation. If no trade deal has been negotiated before that deadline, it's unclear whether Trump would revert to imposing his so-called 'reciprocal' rates — some of which were as high as 50% — or whether countries could face even higher rates. Trump also raised the possibility of extending the pause even further, though Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent testified last week that may only be offered for countries 'who are negotiating in good faith.' 'They are not going to throw out the [G7] agenda unless the security situation becomes world-threateningly grave,' Maurice Obstfeld, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, said, referring to conversations world leaders are likely to have at the summit revolving around trade. Already, the 10% tariff Trump levied on practically every country's exports to the US, and the extra 50% tariff on steel and aluminum and 25% on cars, is starting to take a toll on some foreign countries' economies. For instance, United Kingdom data published last week indicated its economy in April shrank at rates not seen in nearly two years as exports to the US fell by a record amount. And it may only be a matter of time before other economies take a hit, with the World Bank projecting the weakest decade of global economic growth since the 1960s, according to a report the group released last week citing Trump's trade policies as a major catalyst. In particular, the World Bank predicts the US and Europe will suffer some of the sharpest growth declines compared to what it forecast earlier this year as a result of reduced trade and uncertainty regarding tariffs, which are expected to stymie economic activity. There's little doubt every world leader traveling to the summit in the Canadian Rockies would like to depart with a plan to avoid facing higher tariffs. But it's less certain whether that will happen. On a Friday call with reporters previewing Trump's agenda for the summit, a senior US official said trade, among other topics, including international security, will be discussed. 'The president is eager to pursue his goals in all of these areas, including making America's trade relationships fair and reciprocal,' the official said. Already, Japan's Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba told reporters on Friday his one-on-one meeting with Trump at the summit will center around ongoing trade negotiations. But Lipsky isn't holding his breath for a trade deal announcement with Japan, or any other country present at the meeting. (In addition to leaders from G7 countries — Japan, the US, the UK, France, Germany, Canada and Italy — leaders of the European Union, Australia, India, Brazil, Mexico, South Korea, South Africa and Ukraine will also be attending. 'Even if they're close to one, I don't think it makes sense in front of your colleagues to say, 'Here's the baseline I created with the Trump administration,' and give him that leverage point toward them.' That said, he's anticipating Trump and Ishiba could convey that they're close to finalizing a deal. Discussions with the EU are shaping up to be the biggest wild card. Two weeks ago, Trump threatened to hike tariffs to 50% on EU exports to the US at the start of this month, saying discussions with EU leaders were 'going nowhere.' Then, after speaking with EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen days later, he backed off. 'Countries would be happy to reach some deal with the US that lowers tariffs and involves some concessions that they can live with,' Obstfeld said. But the EU is 'certainly not going to modify their VAT (value-added tax) to get a deal with US.' Trump has repeatedly demanded the EU abandon these taxes, which he claims unfairly hurt American exports there. Even though Trump will probably meet with France's President Emmanuel Macron, Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni following their recent visit to the White House, trade isn't likely to be a major topic of discussion with them, given von der Leyen is the lead negotiator, said Lipsky. 'This creates a strange dynamic during the meetings.'
Yahoo
23 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Joint Statement by Prime Minister Carney and Prime Minister Starmer
OTTAWA, ON, June 15, 2025 /CNW/ - Today, Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada, and Sir Keir Starmer, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (UK), met in Ottawa to reaffirm the profound friendship and shared values that unite both nations. The Canada-UK partnership, rooted in a common history and enduring people-to-people ties, continues to grow stronger, with a focus on delivering prosperity and security for the working people of Canada and the UK alike. The two leaders discussed the many geopolitical challenges currently facing the world, including in the Middle East and tensions in the Indo-Pacific region, and reaffirmed their steadfast support for Ukraine in the face of Russia's illegal and unjustifiable war of aggression. The two leaders underscored the importance of a fair, open and predictable global trading system; reiterated their commitment to a rules-based international order underpinned by respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity; and committed to advancing peace and trans-Atlantic security. They agreed the following joint initiatives aimed at strengthening economic growth and prosperity and enhancing collective security and defence: Growth and Innovation Partnership Canada and the UK are committed to delivering economic growth for their people. The two Prime Ministers today announced further collaboration on trade, science, technology and innovation. Through their Partnership, Canada and the UK will work together to: Trade: Strengthen trade ties as trusted, reliable partners. This will include expanding trade under the Canada-UK Trade Continuity Agreement. We will establish a new structured UK-Canada Economic and Trade Working Group to deepen our existing trading relationship further, including to address existing market access barriers, to expand existing arrangements into new areas, such as digital trade, and to explore cooperation in the development of critical minerals and sovereign artificial intelligence infrastructure. The working group will report back to both Prime Ministers within six months. Canada will seek to introduce legislation this autumn to ratify the UK's accession to the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership. Semiconductors: Deliver industrial R&D projects to enhance both nations' complementary strengths in semiconductors, photonics, emerging materials and chip design. They will deepen connections between the innovation rich semiconductor ecosystems in Canada and the UK to help build resilient supply chains and accelerate breakthroughs in this key sector that is driving economic growth. Quantum: Announce a joint commitment to develop secure, transatlantic communications based on quantum technologies, allowing us to connect our national systems and lay the groundwork to create a truly global, next-generation network, with applications across our financial and telecoms sectors. Digital: Mutually reinforce nation-building digital public infrastructure by co-developing policy levers and standards, and common technology components. Artificial Intelligence: Deepen and explore new collaborations on frontier AI systems to support our national security. This will include a partnership agreement to strengthen existing collaboration on AI safety and security between the Canadian AI Safety Institute and UK AI Security Institute, and new Canadian and UK MOUs with leading Canadian AI firm Cohere. Under the Canadian MOU, Cohere will collaborate with the Canadian AI Safety Institute and develop their commitment to building cutting-edge data centres in Canada. Under the UK MOU, Cohere will expand their UK presence to support the delivery of the UK AI Opportunities Action Plan. Both MOUs reflect ongoing collaboration on the application of AI tools in security and intelligence and are rooted in Cohere's strong foundations in Canada and ongoing commitment to the UK. Biomanufacturing: Strengthen collaboration to deliver economic growth and be better prepared for future health emergencies, including a joint investment of $14.8 million to support joint biomanufacturing research and development that will grow the talent and skills pipeline in both countries, and to help businesses scale. Civil Nuclear: Develop a world-leading fusion energy collaboration and deepen cooperation on nuclear energy from fission to reduce the influence of Russia on our international fuel supply chains. Critical Minerals: Intensify bilateral cooperation by conducting a strategic mapping exercise to pinpoint key critical minerals, infrastructure, production and processing capacities. They will identify projects for joint investment to support secure and sustainable critical minerals supply chain development and leverage all available financial tools to mobilize funding and drive production to strengthen our manufacturing and mining sectors. Enhanced Defence and Security Partnership The two leaders agreed to strengthen cooperation – both bilaterally and through the NATO Alliance and Five Eyes partnership – to safeguard democratic values advance global stability and ensure the safety of our people in an increasingly complex world. To achieve this, they committed to: Ukraine: Further support Ukraine in its self-defence against Russia's war of aggression. This will include continued support for the Coalition of the Willing and respective efforts to support Ukraine's domestic defence industrial production. The UK and Canada will continue to work together to support the Air Force Capability Coalition and develop cutting edge aircraft weaponry technology in support of Ukraine. Military Cooperation: Position the Canada-UK defence relationship for further growth across military operations, industrial collaboration, and defence innovation, catalyzed by Canada's newly announced defence investment trajectory and the UK's Strategic Defence Review. Canada and the UK will work towards a new permanent arrangement for the long-term and sustainable use of British Army Training Unit Suffield (BATUS) through the "BATUS Future Project". The Project will deepen the Canada-UK relationship on defence and showcase CFB Suffield as a multi-purpose facility for the development and testing of new equipment and cutting-edge technology which are vital to maintaining our shared security and prosperity. Intelligence: Build on the long history of deep and productive collaboration between our security and intelligence organizations by launching coordinated operational campaigns to combat terrorism and violent extremism, and deepening collaboration on enhanced intelligence collection, including by expanding officer exchange programs. National Security: Tackle evolving state threats together, including sabotage, transnational repression, foreign interference, malicious cyber activity, information manipulation and economic coercion, all of which seeks to undermine our national security and that of our Allies and partners. This will include joint work to invest in civil society organizations actively working to counter digital transnational repression through the Joint Canada-UK Common Good Cyber Fund, a first-of-its-kind multilateral fund aimed at supporting civil society actors at high risk. To kickstart this fund, Canada and the UK are providing $5.7 million in seed funding to the Fund, which will be disbursed over 5 years. They also agreed to strengthen bilateral development and delivery of secure communications products and cutting-edge cryptography and explore new research partnerships to address gaps in AI security and evolve AI models to support national security. Border Security: Strengthen bilateral cooperation to tackle transnational organized criminal organizations engaged in the illicit movement of goods and narcotics, and bolster our response to combat irregular migration, migrant smuggling and human trafficking, including through deeper bilateral information and knowledge exchange. This document is also available at SOURCE Prime Minister's Office View original content:
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Canada and the United Kingdom think and work alike, Starmer says during Ottawa visit
OTTAWA — British Prime Minister Keir Starmer says the historic ties and long-standing working relationship between the United Kingdom and Canada are not just reflections of the past, but are very much needed "in the here and now." Starmer says the two Commonwealth members think and work alike, having collaborated for years on issues of security, defence, trade and the economy. Starmer met with Prime Minister Mark Carney in Ottawa today before the two leaders leave for the G7 leaders' summit in Alberta. Carney, a former Bank of England governor, said he was an admirer of Starmer and had learned a lot from him over the years. Starmer had dinner with Carney on Saturday at his official residence at Rideau Cottage, later taking in the hockey game between the Edmonton Oilers and the Florida Panthers. Starmer's visit comes as Canada seeks to reopen trade talks with the U.K. which were paused early in 2024, leaving in place a temporary deal signed after Brexit. — With files from Jim Bronskill This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 15, 2025. Dylan Robertson, The Canadian Press Sign in to access your portfolio
