A tiny Ontario town — population 58,000 — is vying to be the mouse that roared in the battle against big bad U.S. protectionism.
Upset one of the community’s biggest manufacturers is being shut out of municipal infrastructure projects south of the border under Buy American legislation, the town of Halton Hills is taking matters into its own hands.
The town council unanimously passed a resolution that would have the Toronto-area municipality discriminate against any country that discriminates against Canada.
And the idea is proving so attractive it will likely be put to a vote during next month’s annual meeting of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities.
Mayor Rick Bonnette says his town’s action is not a “Buy Canadian” response, but he does want Canadian municipalities — which will be spending the lion’s share of the federal government’s $12-billion infrastructure program — to shut the door to contract bidders from the U.S. until that country opens its doors to Canadian firms.
“There comes a point where you can’t stand by and do nothing when people (are) losing their jobs,” he said.
