Industry Committee on Sept. 19th, 2023

[Brad Vis, Conservative, Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, BC]

I'll just respectfully point out—and I don't know this issue as well as Brian does—that as soon as Stellantis found out about the Volkswagen deal, the first thing they did—it doesn't matter what's in the contract—was say, “We're not going to go forward anymore unless we get more money from the Government of Canada.” The number one concern that people had when the Volkswagen contract was signed was that this was going to lead to a slippery slope, where any major investment in Canada now will require major subsidies from the Government of Canada because that's the precedent that's been set. Shortly thereafter that came to fruition with the Stellantis contract.

Everyone already knows the key aspects of the deal outlined by the minister: that for maybe one of the first times in the history of Canada, we're not only going to be subsidizing the creation of the factory but we're also going to pay Volkswagen—one of the only companies in the history of Canada to break our Environmental Protection Act—billions of dollars to produce a product they then get to sell for a profit for up to 10 years. That is a fact. That is the basis of the contract.

The commercially sensitive nature came out a long time ago. I just want to have a copy of those contracts so that, when the PBO comes, we can challenge and look in detail at the costing estimates on a year-by-year basis in terms of what the Government of Canada is going to be giving Volkswagen to produce a battery they're going to be able to sell for additional profit.

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Joël Lightbound]

Okay, colleagues, I see no more interventions. There is a motion on the floor. Technically it should be voted on, unless there are more comments or debate. However, there are suggestions by some to just—

[Brad Vis, Conservative, Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, BC]

That's a fair point. You can delay the vote if you'd like.

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

I agree.

[The Chair, Liberal, Joël Lightbound]

Okay, that's perfect.

Then it shall be discussed between the parties, and we will keep it going, Mr. Vis.

[Brad Vis, Conservative, Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, BC]

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Joël Lightbound]

Mr. Lemire, we'll come back to your motion once we've received it in writing.

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

Do you have it?

[The Chair, Liberal, Joël Lightbound]

I haven't seen it, but if you want to discuss it right away, Mr. Lemire—

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

No, but it was important to table it, since it's related to the bill that will be debated a little later this evening in the House.

[The Chair, Liberal, Joël Lightbound]

That's fine. Then we can discuss it at the subcommittee. In any case, I think we'll be busy studying Bill C‑27 for the next two months.

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

Yes, absolutely, but I think it's important. Everyone has an interest in modernizing this legislation and hearing from people in the industry, the CRTC and the department, as well as competition in the wireless context. Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Joël Lightbound]

Thank you, everyone.

That concludes our meeting. We've completed our study of Bill C‑34 on time and on budget, which is wonderful.

Thanks to everyone. Have a great evening. We will see you next week.

The meeting is adjourned.