Prime Minister Mark Carney told a conference of municipal leaders that the federal government will help cities deal with the impact of Donald Trump’s trade war by boosting domestic productivity through investing in projects of national significance.

“We’ll move from delay to delivery,” Carney said in a speech at the annual meeting of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, “ensuring that the Canadian government becomes a catalyst for, not an impediment to, nation-building projects that will supercharge growth in communities large and small.”

Carney acknowledged that in the “face of foreign threats” Canada’s “longstanding weak productivity is straining government finances, making life less affordable for Canadian families and threatening the sustainability of vital social programs.”

The Liberal government is working on a bill that will fast track approvals for these projects that could include expanding railways, ports and pipelines.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford, says ahead of Monday’s scheduled First Ministers Meeting in Saskatoon, he has submitted his list of priorities for the Federal government to consider. Among them is development of the “Ring of Fire” in northeast Ontario which holds a wealth of critical minerals, which for the most part remains stuck in the ground.

Ford said that it’s also vital Ottawa builds pipelines to get oil and gas flowing across Canada in order to sell energy to new markets in Asia and Europe.

“We can’t be reliant on the U.S. any longer. We have to build pipelines west, north and east.”

The major concern for city leaders centered on getting access to funds to deal with the housing crisis. The Liberal government is creating a national housing agency aimed at doubling the rate of home construction over the next decade to 500,000 houses each year. The government is pledging to help municipalities slash development fees in half and provide $25 billion dollars to help finance new affordable homes.

Carney also said that his government will make municipalities “whole through federal investments in water, power lines and wastewater.”

Mayor of Toronto, Olivia Chow applauded his promise to get more affordable housing built.

“I’ve waited for several decades to finally see a government that is coming back to building housing,” said Chow, who met with Carney before he gave his speech. “We’ve been asking at FCM, at the city of Toronto and myself personally…We are extremely pleased that is in the Throne Speech and that is what the prime minister will do.”

Although memorandums of understanding have been signed, money has yet to be transferred to the cities. That’s a concern for Windsor’s mayor Drew Dilkins. The southwestern Ontario city is an auto-manufacturing hub and has been hit hard by tariffs.

While Trump is using tariffs to drive manufacturing back to the U.S. Dilkins wants the Prime Minister to focus on negotiating a new trade agreement that protects the auto industry in Canada and will bring certainty.

“People just want to know what the rules of engagement are. Businesses want to know that too, so they can plan for their futures. Everyone wants to know where we’re to land on this and how fast we can land.”

Dilkins said the uncertainty over auto-tariffs has already resulted in the jobless rate in the city increasing to 10.7 percent. And it could get worse.

The auto industry employs about 20,000 workers in Windsor. Plants haven’t been closed, but there have been temporary shutdowns at the Stellantis assembly plant since Trump started his trade war against Canada just days after his inauguration in January.