Bill Blair, who has served as Defence Minister, believes Sault Ste. Marie could potentially play a role in producing critical military infrastructure as part of Canada’s plan to counter the economic impacts of tariffs imposed by the United States.
The longtime Liberal is currently in town to support the re-election bid of Liberal incumbent Terry Sheehan, meeting with community stakeholders to pitch pieces of the party’s platform in the lead-up to the 2025 federal election.
“It is the most consequential time in our nation's history, and I think Sault Ste. Marie is really at the heart of that,” Blair said during a media availability at Sheehan’s campaign office on Tuesday.
Blair’s visit comes days after Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney rolled out a campaign platform that would see the Liberals spend $130 billion on new measures — including increased spending on infrastructure and defence — over the next four years if elected.
Blair told reporters that Sheehan reached out to him when U.S. President Donald Trump first announced plans to impose tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum, expressing a need to support both industry and workers in Sault Ste. Marie.
He added that Liberals will use Canadian materials such as steel, aluminum and softwood lumber to ensure that investments benefit both industry and communities.
“We're building new destroyers, we're acquiring new armoured vehicles. We're going to have to build enormous infrastructure to support the Canadian Armed Forces,” Blair said.
“It means barracks and housing and hangers and submarine pens and shipyards. We have to make huge new investments in ourselves and our own capability.”
The defence minister met with Algoma Steel CEO Michael Garcia on Monday as part of his two-day tour of the Sault.
“I've assured him that I want to do business with him,” Blair said, while cautioning that including the Sault steelmaker in shipbuilding and armament contracts could take a number of months.
“I believe that they have a remarkable capacity,” he said.
“They've got an excellent workforce. They've got real capability at their steel mill — they're already producing plate steel that we think that we can use.”
United Steelworkers Local 2251 President Mike Da Prat told SooToday Tuesday that supplying steel for military infrastructure could be “viable” for Algoma Steel while keeping the steelmaker productive.
Da Prat added that his union had been inquiring with Algoma Steel about what it would take to certify steel to utilize it for military shipbuilding in the future.
“We’re definitely happy to hear that’s being looked into,” he said.
Blair said the federal government would have to hash out contractual arrangements and create secure supply chains for military defence industries that incorporate Canadian materials in response to tariffs imposed by the United States.
“There's some work to be done here, but I believe the capacity is there. Frankly, we don't have a choice,” Blair said.
“I think it needs to be very clear: We cannot rely on the United States — we have to demonstrate that we can become self-reliant and resilient to the illegal tariffs that the president imposed upon us.”
Algoma Steel did not respond to a request for comment made by SooToday on Tuesday.