In a joint statement issued by the Prime Minister of Canada, First Ministers said the Charlottetown meeting was the 14th time they had convened since March 2025 and the fifth time they had met in person. They also acknowledged wildfires affecting many parts of the country and thanked firefighters, first responders and Canadian Armed Forces personnel for assisting affected communities.
Canada’s First Ministers met in Charlottetown to discuss Canada-US trade relations, energy security, labour mobility and internal trade barriers.
Leaders reaffirmed a united approach to addressing US tariff actions, while supporting trade diversification and economic partnerships.
They also outlined plans to expand electricity infrastructure, strengthen workforce mobility.
The PM updated Premiers on foreign policy issues and international developments, including efforts to strengthen and diversify Canada’s trade partnerships. Canada’s new government has signed more than 20 economic and security partnerships, while provinces and territories have led nearly 140 trade missions since March 2025, the statement said. The federal government committed to continue engaging with provinces and territories so their interests are represented in current and future trade negotiations.
Energy reliability was another focus, with First Ministers noting that Canada’s electricity demand is expected to double by 2050, driven by economic growth, industrial expansion, artificial intelligence and electrified technologies. They also noted the federal government’s new National Electricity Strategy, which the statement said will double the capacity of Canada’s grid by 2050 and supply clean, reliable and affordable power across the country.
First Ministers directed Energy Ministers to work together on electricity interties. They agreed to complete pre-development work on their respective intertie projects by July 2027, to have an initial tranche of projects underway by the end of 2027 and all projects no later than the end of 2028, subject to favourable market conditions. The statement said these objectives would require full Indigenous engagement.
On internal trade and workforce mobility, First Ministers said federal, provincial and territorial governments need to take transformative action to unlock Canada’s economic potential. They affirmed support for collaboration to increase capacity to train and certify skilled trades workers and agreed to work towards an agreement in principle by the end of 2026 to adopt model mutual recognition legislation to create one Canadian market and support labour mobility.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk
