Donald Trump’s increasingly strident approach to relations with Canada is provoking fear about the potential consequences north of the border and questions about just how serious the U.S. president-elect actually is.

Trump says he will be putting substantial tariffs against Canada and Mexico when he returns to the White House in less than two weeks. The president-elect has previously said he’ll put 25 per cent duties on America’s closest neighbours unless they can stop the flow of illegal drugs across the border.