Evidence of meeting #45 for Finance in the 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was investment.
A video is available from Parliament.
5:45 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative James Rajotte
Sorry, Mr. Van Kesteren.
Colleagues, we do have bells for 30 minutes. Can I assume there's consent of the committee to go for another 15 or 20 minutes?
He has five minutes.
5:45 p.m.
Conservative
Dave Van Kesteren Conservative Chatham-Kent—Essex, ON
The European trade agreement is a darned good thing. It's going to open up some.... Would you agree?
5:45 p.m.
President, Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers' Association
We're in support of the CETA because one of the key aspects is that it puts a placeholder in there that recognizes the integration of the industry. As and when the EU-U.S. agreement comes forward, we will be able to accumulate content that is important for the rules of origin. If we can't meet the rules of origin requirements, we're dead in the water. We can't benefit.
5:45 p.m.
Conservative
Dave Van Kesteren Conservative Chatham-Kent—Essex, ON
On that note, I remember having come here in 2006. The auto industry was interested in making some changes. There were some things that just weren't right. Harmonization was one of them. We managed to accomplish that, and that must be a great help for the auto industry.
5:45 p.m.
President, Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers' Association
Canada-U.S. harmonization is the primary...and we have global forums in which we're going to look at global harmonization.
5:45 p.m.
Conservative
Dave Van Kesteren Conservative Chatham-Kent—Essex, ON
That's next.
On the bridge to the United States, we heard from all the cross-border work that was being done between plants that was just critical, another great advancement for the auto industry.
5:45 p.m.
President, Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers' Association
It is indeed, and we just have to get the other side of that.
5:45 p.m.
Conservative
Dave Van Kesteren Conservative Chatham-Kent—Essex, ON
Yes, and we're well on the way there.
You mentioned the investment fund. I can just rattle some of those numbers off. I pulled them up. There was $80 million to Ford for their engine plant. That was part of that. Linamar Corporation received $55 million in AIF funding. Toyota received $70 million, and then Magma, $22 million, and Toyota $17 million again. That money was being used by these industries to help make better cars, and the result was a stronger automotive industry here in Canada.
5:45 p.m.
President, Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers' Association
Mr. Van Kesteren, if I could say though, we are now at the next cycle, so decisions have to be made now for the next round of investment. We've seen 17 new investments go into Mexico, as an example.
5:45 p.m.
Conservative
Dave Van Kesteren Conservative Chatham-Kent—Essex, ON
I heard that, but are you suggesting that we have to start to bribe these companies to stay? Do we have to offer them money?
We are doing these things because I remember sitting here and your group coming and other groups coming. You needed the harmonization. You needed the bridge. You needed the investment fund. You're saying the next.... Can you maybe explain that to me?
5:50 p.m.
President, Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers' Association
There are a couple of key things here. Those loans took us to where we are now. We are in a sort of three- to five-year cycle on new investments. We are there now. We should have had, quite frankly, some of the investments that have gone to the southern United States and Mexico.
5:50 p.m.
Conservative
Dave Van Kesteren Conservative Chatham-Kent—Essex, ON
What's happening in the States? Why are they winning—
5:50 p.m.
President, Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers' Association
They are putting bigger packages together. They're putting packages together that get rid of all the administrative burden. They're making it very easy and they're very timely. The key thing here is the speed at which the decisions are being made and therefore the speed at which the applications for these incentives are being granted—key elements.
5:50 p.m.
Conservative
Dave Van Kesteren Conservative Chatham-Kent—Essex, ON
But $4.1 billion went into the Detroit two; I guess Ford was.... You know, give these guys credit. But Chrysler and General Motors got $4.1 billion.
What's happening with that? Why wouldn't that be the staying power to keep those companies here?
5:50 p.m.
Conservative
5:50 p.m.
President, Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers' Association
It's the investment cycle, and new product cycle. Because the competition is so great in other jurisdictions, the next round of investments has to be that much more competitive. We have to be not just competitive but we have to create an edge to attract that investment away from those jurisdictions.
5:50 p.m.
Conservative
5:50 p.m.
NDP
Guy Caron NDP Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques, QC
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
Mr. Patry, I am going to start with you. You haven't been in high demand today.
I want to start with the issue of employment insurance. You know as well as I do that, in 2012, the government introduced EI reforms. I am from eastern Quebec, where the economy is largely dependent on seasonal jobs, and those reforms have hit us quite hard.
How do you measure the consequences of the EI reforms? When the government is asked that question in the House, its answer is that, at the end of the day, access to EI has not been reduced and that people still have access to EI, as was the case before.
October 1st, 2014 / 5:50 p.m.
Treasurer, Confédération des syndicats nationaux
Quebec has regions where the reforms were felt very deeply, including all of eastern Quebec, not to mention the Maritimes. I am not as familiar with the situation in the Maritimes, but I do know that, because of the reforms, many seasonal workers were forced to accept lower paying jobs as far away as 100 km from home.
The impact on the adjudication process has also been quite significant, the process having been somewhat gutted. Those who are unhappy with their decisions and want to appeal them now have to endure a much longer process, to say nothing of the fact that they have no income in the interim. With the process of challenging a decision taking so much longer, the people we represent are being hit quite hard.
5:50 p.m.
NDP
Guy Caron NDP Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques, QC
You are referring to the elimination of the boards of referees and their being replaced by the Social Security Tribunal, which also hears numerous appeals of decisions under other federal programs, not just EI.
