What did Carney ‘negotiate away to the Americans’? Poilievre wants answers for Gordie Howe Bridge deal

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has called out Prime Minister Mark Carney for making “contradictory statements” on how revenue from the new Gordie Howe International Bridge will be split between Canada and the United States.

In a letter to the PM shared on social media, Poilievre wrote: “Canada paid for 100 per cent of the cost of building the Gordie Howe International Bridge under the simple promise that we would collect 100 per cent of the tolls until the cost was repaid.

“Last week, you announced an agreement giving Americans a cut of profits sooner. Since then, Canadians have been left in the dark about how much you conceded with your government hiding the agreement from the public.”

On July 10, the Government of Canada confirmed that the Gordie Howe Bridge will open on July 27, following weeks of delays and public criticism from the Trump administration. However, the new terms of the deal have not been disclosed by either the Canadian or U.S. government.

We paid for this bridge.

So, Prime Minister, what’s the deal? pic.twitter.com/LL8SQWMOxw

— Pierre Poilievre (@PierrePoilievre) July 17, 2026

In a press conference in London, Ont., on Thursday, Carney was pressed on what share of the tolls will go to each party. Originally, Canada was to receive all the tolls until it was fully repaid for financing the $6.4 billion bridge, after which the two countries would split the revenue.

“Splitting of tolls, any sharing of the toll revenue won’t happen until all of the debt is repaid,” he said. “We will split net revenues over the course of the first 15 years, and those net revenues are after operational costs.”

He added that he expects net revenues for the first couple of years to be “modest.”

Meanwhile, in an interview with CTV on Sunday, Carney said: “The word ‘net’ does a lot of work in this. We are sharing after Canada is paid back.” He later added that “there’s not going to be a lot of net to split” with the U.S.

Net revenue is the total amount of money made, minus adjustments such as discounts, while net profit refers to what remains after deducting all business expenses, including operating costs.

Poilievre continued in his letter to the PM: “While answering questions about the deal, you made directly contradictory statements about what you’ve given away.” He pointed out that Carney said the deal is “not splitting the tolls of the bridge,” but that it is “an agreement for 15 years to split net revenues,” and “any sharing of the toll revenue won’t happen until all of the debt is paid.”

The opposition leader asked, “What about the debt you said would be paid off first? Are Canadians getting our promised money back or not?”

He concluded the letter by writing: “It’s been a week; it’s time for you to release the deal so Canadians can see for themselves what you negotiated away to Americans.”

Poilievre is not the only Conservative politician who has criticized Carney’s transparency on the deal. In response to Thursday’s press conference, MP Roman Baber wrote on social media: “What’s Net Revenues, I thought this guy was a banker? What Carney really says is that Canada and the US will be splitting Earnings as opposed to Tolls.”

Meanwhile, fellow MP Andrew Lawton said: “Carney has changed his story at least twice and even today it appears he didn’t accurately describe his ‘deal.’ The Liberals say they can’t share the details of the deal because it was only ‘in principle.’ And they don’t even know what those principles are?”

Carney has changed his story at least twice and even today it appears he didn’t accurately describe his “deal.”

The Liberals say they can’t share the details of the deal because it was only “in principle.” And they don’t even know what those principles are? https://t.co/BVf8ZMajLv

— Andrew Lawton (@AndrewLawton) July 17, 2026

Construction on the Gordie Howe International Bridge, which connects Windsor, Ont., with Detroit, Michigan, began in 2018. It is intended to address the congestion on the privately owned Ambassador Bridge, which handles just over a quarter of all Canada-U.S. trade.

However, in February, Trump suggested that the U.S. should own half the project, pledging to block its opening “until the United States is fully compensated for everything we have given” Canada.

His comments came shortly after the Moroun family, which owns the competing Ambassador Bridge, made a US$1 million contribution to MAGA Inc.

Meanwhile, The Canadian Press has reported that Baxter Hunt, the U.S. consul general in Toronto, raised questions about the deal on a phone call to bridge authority chair Marie Campagna, shortly before Trump’s February comments.

According to emails obtained by The Canadian Press through the Access to Information Act, Campagna said Hunt had “raised several questions,” including, “When will we know toll rates?”

After Trump took to social media to insist the U.S. should be compensated before the Gordie Howe Bridge opened, records show the bridge authority produced a point-by-point fact check of Trump’s post and closely tracked media coverage of the issue.

When Ottawa announced that a new deal had been reached last week, Trump posted again on Truth Social, indicating that the new deal was more lucrative for the American side.

“I was able to cut a MUCH BETTER DEAL for America,” he wrote. “The original deal made was unacceptable to me!”