Ottawa to send MP with Sask. Premier Scott Moe on China trade trip

Saskatchewan·NewFederal government promises it will announce “additional measures in support of Canadian producers shortly.”Kings-Hants MP Kody Blois, parliamentary secretary to the prime minister, will join trade delegationAlexander Quon · CBC News · Posted: Sep 04, 2025 4:16 PM EDT | Last Updated: 17 minutes agoPremier Scott Moe says he is happy the federal government is sending a representative on Saskatchewan’s trade delegation to China later this week. (Don Somers/CBC)Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe will have some company when he travels to China this weekend as Prime Minister Mark Carney announced his parliamentary secretary will join the trade delegation. Kody Blois, MP for Kings-Hants, Nova Scotia, will spend three days in China as Moe attempts to bridge a divide that has led China to announce punishing tariffs on canola, according to a news release from the Prime Minister’s Office.The decision signals a partnership between the Saskatchewan and federal governments, Moe said at a press conference in Saskatoon on Thursday.”Thank you to Prime Minister Carney for prioritizing this mission and ensuring that we are working together,” Moe said. WATCH | Saskatchewan premier, PM’s parliamentary secretary to lead trade mission in China:Saskatchewan Premier, PM’s Parliamentary Secretary to lead trade mission in China|1400|MVS Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe is leading a trade mission to China this weekend. He’ll be joined by the Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister. The trip comes just weeks after China slapped a 75 per cent tariff on Canadian canola. Saskatchewan is the largest producer of canola in the world. The CBC’s Marina von Stackelberg joins us from Ottawa on this story. Saskatchewan’s premier said they will meet with Chinese government officials and industry stakeholders that will be impacted by the tariffs. Last month, China announced a 75.8 per cent preliminary duty on Canadian canola seed after an anti-dumping investigation it began last year.China claims the “dumping” of Canadian canola into the Chinese market is hurting its domestic canola oil market.Kody Blois, parliamentary secretary to the prime minister, will join Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe on his trade mission to China. (CBC News)The investigation — and the 100 per cent tariff levied on Canadian canola oil and meal in March — are widely understood to be in response to Canada’s 100 per cent tariff on Chinese electric vehicles.Canola is one of Saskatchewan and Canada’s most valuable crops. In 2024, canola seed production in the country generated about $12.9 billion in farm cash receipts, which represents sale income and payments that support or subsidize the agriculture sector.Additional measures to be announcedThe federal government has been relatively quiet in response to the Chinese tariffs only issuing a statement in August.Thursday’s announcement that Blois will accompany Moe did promise a change in tone. “The government will announce additional measures in support of Canadian producers shortly,” according to the statement by the Prime Minister’s Office. It’s unclear what those measures will look like. Moe said the end to this trade dispute will have to be reached through Carney and Chinese President Xi Jinping.”What we are making every effort to do is to bring the opportunity for that conversation of a closer trading relationship between Canada, specifically Saskatchewan agriculture and China, to pull that meeting forward and to bring those conversations forward,” Moe said. Blois directed all interview requests to the Prime Minister’s Office, which declined to comment. Saskatchewan’s Minister of Trade and Export Development, Warren Keating, will carry out a parallel trade mission to South Korea while Moe is in China.Keating and Moe will then spend the final days of the six-day long trip in Japan to expand the market for a range of Saskatchewan products. The upcoming trade mission will be the first time in six years that a Canadian premier has led a trade mission to China.ABOUT THE AUTHORAlexander Quon has been a reporter with CBC Saskatchewan since 2021 and is happy to be back working in his hometown of Regina after half a decade in Atlantic Canada. He has previously worked with the CBC News investigative unit in Nova Scotia and Global News in Halifax. Alexander specializes in municipal political coverage and data-reporting. He can be reached at: alexander.quon@cbc.ca.FacebookTwitter