Holt won't commit to restocking U.S. booze, an ask from Ottawa, until trade deal inked

Savannah Awde · CBC News

· Posted: Aug 20, 2026 6:53 PM EDT | Last Updated: August 21

New Brunswick Premier Susan Holt says she won't commit to restocking U.S. booze, an ask from Ottawa amid trade negotiations, until she sees the final deal.

Several premiers confirmed Prime Minister Mark Carney made the request during a briefing with the provinces, as Ottawa works to strike an agreement by the end of the week.

Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew told CBC News on Thursday that Carney told the premiers during the briefing that there would be no trade deal with the Trump administration if U.S. booze doesn't return to store shelves.

Despite that, it's not clear yet whether New Brunswick will agree to make that concession.

"We're holding out hope that we're going to see a reduction in tariffs," Holt said in an interview in St. Stephen Thursday evening.

"And if we do see a significant reduction in the things that matter to New Brunswickers, then we're part of team Canada, we'll do what it takes."

On Wednesday, Holt said she wants the tariffs imposed last year removed before the province considers any concessions, a message she reiterated Thursday.

Holt added that the prime minister isn't asking for booze to be restocked before a deal is signed.

"This isn't something we do until we see a reduction in tariffs," she said. "He's letting us know that this is one of the conditions they've put on the table."

Booze from the United States has been back on N.B. Liquor shelves since January.

But, at the Holt government's direction, the Crown corporation stopped importing from the U.S. starting in February 2025. Not long after, in March, U.S. booze was removed from store and grocery shelves.

In May 2025, U.S. products started to be sold to agents and licensees and then became available at the N.B. Liquor depot store in Salisbury in September 2025.

Carney's ask, several premiers confirmed this week, extends to removing any procurement policies that exclude the U.S.

WATCH | ‘Tariff or no tariff, I just wouldn't buy American beer’:

Speaking with reporters Thursday, Prince Edward Island Premier Rob Lantz said he "heard no opposition" from any premiers during a briefing with Carney.

"We went across the country, the premiers spoke their parts," Lantz said.

"And when the time comes to execute that, I think it's very important that we've got a consensus on that."

Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Tony Wakeham said all premiers agreed in principle to Carney's ask.

• U.S. liquor returning to shelves a sign of 'good faith' in trade negotiations, Wakeham says

"He's confident that they will reach an agreement," Wakeham said of Carney. "And as part of this agreement, he asked all the provinces, as a sign of good faith, will you put U.S. liquor back on our shelves, and we all agreed."

Speaking to CBC's Karina Roman on Power & Politics Thursday, Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston said he wouldn't play politics with the ask.

WATCH | 'Holding out hope' for reduction in tariffs - Holt:

"When the prime minister asks something and it's good for the country, it's not my desire to try to play my own politics with it," Houston said.

"This is about the country, this is about tens of thousands of jobs across the country."

Orders depend on demand

If the procurement policy is updated, N.B. Liquor spokesperson Angela Bosse said exactly how much is ordered will depend on customer demand.

Last month, a Nanos poll reported nearly 70 per cent of Canadians would opt against American alcohol if it returned to store shelves.

"If the Government of New Brunswick did decide to remove the ban on importation of U.S. alcohol products, the logistics of getting those products in again would not be an issue," Bosse said in a statement.

"Although [it] would take some time to return these products to store shelves."

In Fredericton, Erin Webb and her father, Marc Horncastle, are both skeptical that Canadians will want to purchase U.S. booze, even if it is restocked.

"We're not buying American products right now in our household," Webb said. "So they can bring it back if they want to, but I don't think it's going to impact our purchasing at all."

Horncastle called the current state of Canada-U.S. relations "mystifying" and believes the concession would be worth a better trade agreement.

"If they think that putting American alcohol back on the shelf is going to help that, then I don't see any reason why we shouldn't," he said.

"Most people aren't going to buy it anyway, most people are still pretty ticked off with where we are right now."

But John Ball, also in Fredericton, said he would welcome a full return of American booze.

"They shouldn't have taken it off in the first place. I thought it was kind of childish," Ball said.

"We're running into a problem when the government tells us what we can purchase and what we can't."