Industry and Technology Committee on Nov. 26th, 2025

[The Chair, Liberal, Ben Carr]

We will not be taking a break for that.

Mr. Ste-Marie, I have a copy that was handed to me. Correct me if I'm wrong, but essentially the motion would now begin as follows: “That the committee report to the House that it condemns the unjustified American tariffs on the Canadian auto sector and that of heavy vehicles”. The rest would remain the same.

You have only added “and that of heavy vehicles”.

Colleagues, I don't think we have to pause on this particular note. Please note that an amendment has been proposed. That means we are speaking to the amendment or we are—

[Gabriel Ste-Marie, Bloc, Joliette—Manawan, QC]

I have a point of order, Mr. Chair.

I have requested that this be a favourable amendment. If we obtain the approval of all colleagues, it could be incorporated immediately.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ben Carr]

If that's the case, yes, but if it's not, there will be a debate and a vote.

Colleagues, I'm just looking around the table. Are we okay to accept the language in the amendment?

[An hon. member]

We are.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ben Carr]

Ms. Borrelli, if you're wishing to speak to the amendment, I'll give you the floor. If you're just reminding me that you're next in the speaking order, I'll get to you when we get to that. Is this on the amendment?

[Kathy Borrelli, Conservative, Windsor—Tecumseh—Lakeshore, ON]

No. Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ben Carr]

Don't worry. I have you next.

Colleagues, does anyone wish to speak to the amendment? Is anyone opposed?

Do we need to call a vote, or are we agreeing to accept the amendment?

It looks like we have agreement.

(Amendment agreed to)

We will resume debate on the motion presented by Madam Dancho and amended by Monsieur Ste-Marie, having added the words I read into the record a moment ago.

Mr. Ste‑Marie, have you finished?

Would you like to continue?

[Gabriel Ste-Marie, Bloc, Joliette—Manawan, QC]

I'm done, thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ben Carr]

All right, thank you.

Ms. Borrelli, the floor is yours.

[Kathy Borrelli, Conservative, Windsor—Tecumseh—Lakeshore, ON]

Thank you, Chair.

I support this motion. This motion is vital to our economy, our communities and the hard-working individuals who dedicate their lives to the auto industry. It's crucial that we engage in serious tariff negotiations to secure the future of Canadian auto jobs.

The Prime Minister made a promise, a commitment, to support those whose livelihoods depend on our automotive sector. It's time to hold him accountable. He hasn't done that yet. Auto workers are the backbone of the industry. Their skills, dedication and resilience are what drive it forward. We are risking not only their jobs but also the very fabric of our economic stability.

We demand that the Prime Minister prioritize these negotiations. It is not just an obligation but a necessity to ensure that workers in the auto sector can thrive, provide for their families and contribute to their communities. No more empty promises. We need to stand united in this call to action. The time to act is now. We need to win for workers. We need our Prime Minister to honour his promises to them. Who cares? I care. We should all care.

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ben Carr]

Thank you, Ms. Borrelli.

Mr. Guglielmin, the floor is yours.

[Michael Guglielmin, Conservative, Vaughan—Woodbridge, ON]

Thank you, Chair.

I'll speak in support of this motion. We're at a critical juncture with respect to our auto industry and so many other industries in this country.

As we know, Americans have launched unjustified tariffs on a variety of our sectors. I've heard from people in my riding about everything from the aluminum sector to the furniture manufacturing sector to the steel supply chain. One by one, these companies are suffering at an alarming rate. Some companies have even told me that for the products they export to the U.S., they're now at the point where they need to consider opening up facilities inside the United States.

We heard the consequences very sharply here at the industry committee and when we had our emergency debate on the auto sector. To remind people at this committee and those watching at home, $14 billion is what the auto industry contributes to our GDP, as well as 125,000 direct jobs, and 8% of manufacturing jobs in Canada are in the auto sector. Every job at an automotive assembly plant supports nine additional jobs, the highest external benefit multiplier of any sector in Canada. That is the severity of what we're facing here.

We've seen GM, for instance, threaten 1,200 workers from their Ingersoll plant. We've seen GM invest $4 billion in the U.S., being forced to drive money there because of these unjustified tariffs. The fact remains that we were supposed to get a deal by July 21 of this year, yet that hasn't happened.

We've also heard at this committee about some other measures we could have taken to support the auto sector. In fact, some auto executives have said there's one thing the government could do right now to support the auto sector, and that is to remove the EV mandate.

I asked some of the members of the auto team—Huw Williams, for instance—directly about the EV mandate and about how it impacts our competitiveness. His response to my question was, “I would absolutely say the EV mandate makes us less competitive and not just domestically. It makes us a less attractive market for investment.”

How about Brian Kingston from the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers' Association? I asked him what he thought about the pause and if it gave the industry the certainty that it requires. He said, “a one-year pause doesn't change the fact that companies have to contract for credits out to 2035. They have to make sure they have the certainty that they can still operate in this market. The pause hasn't provided any additional certainty.”

What about Flavio Volpe from the Automotive Parts Manufacturers' Association? He said, “You may have heard me say from the beginning that the EV mandate was unachievable, unworkable and not based in reality”.

We tried to put a motion forward to the House to get the Liberals to repeal the EV mandate immediately to support the sector. Since we weren't able to get consensus on this committee for that, at the very least I'm hoping that this committee will agree unanimously that it's time to move this motion to the House so we can have this serious debate on the floor of the House of Commons to give Canadian workers in the auto sector and all sectors in this country the debate they deserve, the transparency and accountability they deserve and the results they deserve.

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ben Carr]

Thank you, Mr. Guglielmin.

Go ahead, Ms. Kirkland.

[Rhonda Kirkland, Conservative, Oshawa, ON]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you to committee members.

I don't think it comes as a surprise that I support this motion. As I speak to auto industry advocates and folks who work in the auto industry on a regular basis as the co-chair of the Conservative auto caucus, I can tell you that the word used most often is “uncertainty”. As these auto workers wonder if their government is going to stand up for them or not, they are feeling uncertain, and they're feeling scared about what the future holds. They need to see some action, and they need to see clear action.

This motion would allow for that and allow for potential debate in the House—a critical debate, really, that needs to happen on the floor of the House of Commons. My riding is Oshawa, which I've mentioned before in this committee. Oshawa, Ingersoll, Brampton, Windsor.... I could keep going. In Quebec, we have the Paccar truck manufacturing plant. All of these folks are feeling the hurt, and they're worried not just about the jobs that have already been lost but also about what could potentially be coming. Oshawa's economy relies on the auto sector, and the GM Oshawa assembly plant supports thousands of families indirectly and directly in the Durham Region.

The unjustified American tariffs on Canadian autos have put Oshawa jobs and paycheques at immediate risk. Of course, other communities in Ontario and across the country are also at risk. In Oshawa, though, 750 workers will be losing their jobs in just a little over a month. That translates to more like 1,500 to 2,000, and possibly up to 5,000, in the Durham Region in the auto supply chain.

The Prime Minister promised during the election that he could negotiate a win, that he was a master negotiator and that we were going to see things done at unimaginable speeds, but July 21 came and went. The auto sector looked at that promise, and they were hoping that this was going to be it, that he was going to negotiate a deal and they'd be good to go. However, that promise has not been kept. The government has not yet lived up to its promise, and workers are now caught in the trade fight.

The United States is aggressively defending its workers, and we would like to see the Canadian government do the same here. Canada must stand up for its auto workers and deliver the fair and stable trade environment that they were promised. I believe this committee should stand united in supporting this motion.

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ben Carr]

Thank you very much, Ms. Kirkland.

Mr. Noormohamed, the floor is yours.

[Taleeb Noormohamed, Liberal, Vancouver Granville, BC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I think there's a lot of good in this motion. I think it's important for us to all come together and condemn these unjustified American tariffs on the auto sector and on heavy vehicles.

As a British Columbian, I am disappointed to see that the softwood lumber industry isn't in this motion, and I wonder if we might consider amending it to include softwood lumber, steel and aluminum, which affect all of us. I think it would send a very strong message that we have to work together, as the member on the screen said earlier.

If there's an opportunity for us to work together on amendments, I'm happy to.... In fact, what I will do now is suggest an amendment. As for how we do this, I don't know if it will be considered friendly, but if not, we can find other ways forward.

I propose including this after “sector”: “steel and aluminum industries, and softwood lumber industries”. Then it would be “that it calls upon the government to live up to its promise made during the election to negotiate a win”. Then it would include “and that His Majesty's loyal opposition live up to its commitment that ‘We need to work together’ in order for the government to get a deal in the spirit of taking a Team Canada approach”. Then we'd go to “for the workers whose livelihoods depend on a good deal for Canada”.

If we're going to send a strong signal as a committee, I think it's important for us to take the steps required to show all Canadians from coast to coast to coast whose industries are affected by these unjustified tariffs that we're prepared to do the necessary work, to put aside partisanship and to send a very clear and unequivocal message that we are serious in this committee, that we are serious as Canadians.

I would seek to see if my fellow members would be willing to take on these amendments. I'm happy to circulate them in whatever form the clerk would like, if necessary, but I imagine there won't be any opposition to including those elements. There's a reason I think we should. We saw supports from our government today on steel and softwood, but make no mistake that the impact of these tariffs in British Columbia on softwood, which I really think we should include in this motion, are substantial. The softwood lumber industry in British Columbia represents 49,000 jobs. There are tariff rates of over 50% in some cases. There is almost $10 billion sitting in hold accounts for tariffs, for duties.

The negotiations are not just complicated. They involve a reality that with these tariffs being extended, we're going to see mills close and communities die, communities represented not just by Liberals, but by Conservatives and by New Democrats. In Quebec, they're also going to have an impact.

These tariffs affect all of our constituents. Twenty-five per cent of the jobs in softwood in British Columbia are in the Lower Mainland, in the ridings that are represented by me and my colleague from Richmond East—Steveston.

If we're serious about this and it isn't about politics, I would invite my friends opposite to take on these amendments so we can get down to the business of negotiations, as we have been doing and as the Prime Minister has been doing.

If I may be so bold, as the member from Bowmanville—Oshawa North has a very good friend in J.D. Vance, perhaps he might be able to put some pressure on his friend to hear the message that members opposite are sharing and talking about in this room. With the passion and force required of all of us as Canadians, we must tell our American friends that enough is enough and that this isn't about picking wedges among Canadians, nor about, when it's convenient, wanting to be friends with those who seek to damage our economy, take away our jobs and take away the jobs of our friends, of our families and of our constituents. We will take the steps required to push back on some of these things.

On that basis, Mr. Chair, I'd like to move the amendment I just spoke to, and I look forward to a positive reception from my colleagues opposite.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ben Carr]

Colleagues, here's the situation we find ourselves in. An amendment has been moved. Because of the substance of the amendment, which I don't think—Mr. Noormohamed, you'll correct me if I'm wrong—has been provided to the clerk in both languages.... It's going to take us a bit of time to process that, unless we have unanimous consent that we don't need to do it.

I see Monsieur Ste-Marie saying no, meaning that we need time for the translation of those documents. We're a few minutes away from the time we have allocated, so there isn't really a place for us to go.

Madam Dancho, I know your hand is up so you can be added to the speaking list. Unless you have a point of order, I'm not going to give anybody else the floor until we've established this...because the floor rests with Mr. Noormohamed at this point.

I just want to be clear: You're moving this amendment.

[Taleeb Noormohamed, Liberal, Vancouver Granville, BC]

I am.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ben Carr]

Okay.

Colleagues, we have a few things to do, then. I can establish who speaks next, but again, we're about a minute away from our end time.

If it's not on a point of order, Madam Dancho, I'm not in a position to recognize you.

[Raquel Dancho, Conservative, Kildonan—St. Paul, MB]

If he's moving it, I want to speak to the amendment.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ben Carr]

Your name is down, but we can't enter debate on the amendment until the amendment has been translated and provided to members. We're not at that point yet. The next step is for us to begin the process of translation and correspondence.

Mr. Noormohamed, could you or your staff kindly provide the amendment to the clerk?

Go ahead, Madam Dancho.

[Raquel Dancho, Conservative, Kildonan—St. Paul, MB]

Perhaps he could clearly read out the amendment. It's not a requirement that we get it translated and in our inbox, if the Bloc is okay with that. I'll leave that to Mr. Ste-Marie's discretion. There have been tons of amendments moved on the fly at all kinds of committees, and we have immediately started debating them.

He wasn't clear on the exact language he used. I'm not clear on whether he was saying in general these things should be added or he was moving specific verbiage that we can review. Perhaps he can clarify that.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ben Carr]

Mr. Noormohamed, the floor is still yours. I temporarily shifted to Madam Dancho to allow for the point of clarification. If you'd like to read the amendment back into the record for our purposes, you're certainly welcome to do that, but we'll be adjourning the meeting momentarily.

[Taleeb Noormohamed, Liberal, Vancouver Granville, BC]

If I can do it in under a minute, I will.

The final amended version would read as follows:

That the committee condemns the unjustified American tariffs on the Canadian auto sector, heavy vehicles, steel and aluminum industries, and softwood lumber industries, that it calls upon the government to live up to its promise made during the election to negotiate a win, and that His Majesty's loyal opposition live up to its commitment that “We need to work together” in order for the government to get a deal in the spirit of taking a Team Canada approach for the workers whose livelihoods depend on a good deal for Canada.

[Raquel Dancho, Conservative, Kildonan—St. Paul, MB]

That obligation doesn't exist. Our obligation is to hold you accountable.