Canada: PM Trudeau announces GST pause on some items, $250 cheques to most workers – November 21, 2024

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau holds a news conference in East Gwillimbury, Ontario to announce a proposed two-month pause on GST on some household items from December 14, 2024 to February 15, 2024. The government also plans to issue $250 rebate cheques to all Canadians who worked in 2023 and earned less than $150,000. He is joined by Chrystia Freeland, the deputy prime minister and minister of finance and Tony Van Bynen, Liberal MP for Newmarket—Aurora. Responding to questions from reporters, the prime minister comments on the International Criminal Court’s issuing of arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant over alleged war crimes in Gaza. Trudeau also discusses the possibility of excluding Mexico from the USMCA and negotiating a new bilateral trade deal with the United States.