Ontario Premier ‘ripping up’ $100-million contract with Elon Musk’s Starlink in protest against US tariffs

In a protest against US President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Canada, Ontario Premier Doug Ford said on February 3, that he is “ripping up” a contract with Starlink internet services. The company is owned by Elon Musk.

Ford, who is the leader of Canada’s most populous province, said that he is banning American companies from provincial contracts.

Elon Musk’s Ontario contract

In November, the Progressive Conservative party leader had signed a US$68 million (100 million Canadian dollars) contract with Starlink to deliver high-speed internet to residents who lived in remote areas of rural and northern Ontario.


Musk is part of the Trump administration and oversees the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

Also Read: USAID workers in Washington to work from home on Monday following an early-morning email

What Doug Ford said on US tariffs

The outgoing Ontario Premier slammed Donald Trump’s decision and said that the US president was the “only person to be blamed,” Associated Press reported. He claimed that the cancellation of Musk’s contract was one of the ramifications of the tariffs.

Ford said that he wanted to ensure only Canadian products would be used when building anything.

Reactions on Ford’s statement

Ontario Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie said that she was “glad” the cancellation was “finally happening. She also slammed the Ford government for authorising the deal in the first place. Crombie had been calling for the cancellation of the deal since Trump’s inauguration as the US President earlier this year, as per Globe News.

Other parties in Ontario, the Greens and the National Democratic Party had been critical of the Starlink deal as well.

Also Read: Google to ask US appeals court to overturn verdict on Play Store revamp

Trump’s tariff war

Donald Trump announced 25 percent tariffs on almost all goods from Canada, except energy products, which have a levy of 10 percent. He also levied tariffs on China.

In response, Canada levied 25 percent tariffs on American imports such as beverages, paper products and cosmetics worth over US$20 billion (30 billion Canadian dollars). The levies kick in on February 4. More tariffs are expected to be announced on goods like trucks, aerospace products, beef, pork, passenger vehicles as well as steel and aluminium products, reported AP.

FAQ

1. What has Ford said about doing business with American firms?
The outgoing Ontario Governor claimed that his state won’t do business with people bent on "destroying our economy.”

2. What has Trump said about Canada?
The US President has often called the country as the “51st US state”.