B.C. Premier David Eby said government is doing everything to prepare B.C. for a potential new reality that could have devastating economic consequences. 

According to Eby, 124,000 fewer jobs and a loss of $69 billion in combined gross domestic product could happen if threatened American tariffs of 25 per cent extend over the next three years.

But the "number one priority" of protecting B.C. from the effects of the tariffs could also potentially impact plans for a signature election promise to improve affordability.  

"(We) are orienting the provincial government, all of the tools that we have toward supporting families and businesses that may be affected by tariffs that could be coming...less than a week from now, when the president-elect is sworn in," he said. "That is our number one priority." 

But this priority could conflict with the promise to deliver $1,000 to 90 per cent of households to help with affordability.

When asked twice about the fate of this proposal first announced during the fall election campaign 鈥� before Trump's election and subsequent tariff threats in November 鈥� Eby did not specifically rule out changes. He said B.C. Finance Minister Brenda Bailey is currently preparing the budget.

"She is taking into account all of the uncertainty that there is in terms of the intentions of the Americans and we may have an answer (about the $1,000 measure) the day after the president is sworn, in terms of what his direction is." 

Eby added that his direction to Bailey and her cabinet colleagues is to "ensure that we are responsive to the reality of (B.C.) families now," adding that "everything is being looked at." 

Eby's comments came at the end of the press conference where Bailey presented what Eby called the "best information" about the potential impact of 25 per cent tariffs on all Canadian goods entering the United States. 

They forecast 124,000 fewer jobs, mainly within resource and related manufacturing sectors, with unemployment rising to 6.7 per cent in 2025 and 7.1 per cent in 2026. Other potential impacts include lower corporate profits of somewhere between $3.6 billion and $6.1 billion annually and lower provincial revenues ranging $1.6 billion to $2.5 billion annually, she said. 

While B.C.'s open economy relies less than other Canadian jurisdictions on trade with the United States, the U.S. remains B.C.'s largest trading partner with more than 50 per cent of exports going to the United States.

"The proposed tariffs would have significant impacts to B.C.'s economy," she added. 

Experts within Bailey's ministry arrived at these preliminary figures by comparing two scenarios: one sees B.C.'s economy without the tariffs and one with the tariffs over the duration of Trump's presidency, with Canada retaliating. 

Bailey, who described Trump's tariffs as "unprecedented," said this assessment should "be interpreted as one of many possibilities, as there is a great deal of uncertainty regarding the exact nature" of the proposed policies. Bailey specifically stressed the figures in her presentation stand apart from the official budget forecast still under development before its official release as part of the provincial budget. 

Eby said his government takes the threats "very seriously" as they represent a "direct economic threat to B.C. families."  He said government is not sharing these figures to scare British Columbians, but "to reassure you that we understand the gravity of the threat to you and your family." 

He added that government is focused and ready to respond to the tariffs, which he described as "a declaration of economic war." 

"It is important for British Columbians to know that we understand, that if you lose your job and you lose your home and your community is devastated, that it doesn't matter whether it's because a bomb dropped or because somebody issued a tariff that shut down your local employer 鈥� the effect on you and your family is the same." 

"So it's serious language, but this is a very serious situation," he added.

Eby also used the occasion to reiterate the larger argument that tariffs not only hurt Canadians, but also American consumers and businesses, not to mention a strong economic and political alliance that benefits the United States in its global rivalry with China.

Eby noted that Canada already supplies the U.S. with energy.  Canada can also free the United States from its dependence on critical minerals from China, he added.

"They (Americans) say that their dominant concern is China," Eby said, pointing to American concerns about Chinese "military belligerence" toward Taiwan, the dumping of Chinese goods in U.S. markets and that country's role in the fentanyl crisis.

"So it's bizarre to me that we are having this conversation," Eby said. "It's solely to the benefit of China that the United States and Canada are feuding (over trade). So if we can help deliver that message to the president-elect, to Republicans, then I think we will be able to really reinforce how we are actually allies in this challenging global environment."

Eby's discussion of these issues unfolded against the backdrop of ministers receiving their mandate letters spelling out "high-level commitments and broad policy direction."

The letters ask ministers to 鈥減rioritize鈥� economic growth to generate what Eby called the "wealth needed to support strong public services working families rely on." They also ask ministers to "review all existing programs to ensure they remain relevant and efficient, protect front-line services, grow the economy and keep costs low for British Columbians" on the premise that such steps are necessary to protect B.C. in the eventuality of tariffs.

"I think that for most of us, we hoped that when we saw that tweet in November, (that) this was a passing fancy of (Trump) and that he would move on to other issues," Eby said. "What we have seen since then, is a re-commitment of (Trump) to tariffs in particular, most recently, his commitment to set up an office in order to collect these tariffs from Canada and other countries around the world."