Mr. Speaker, at 5.30 this morning Volvo employees in my riding took over the plant. It should never have happened.
This Liberal government planted the bomb, lit the fuse and walked away. This government planted the bomb when it decided in the last round of world trade talks to lower auto tariffs. It lit the fuse by fostering NAFTA and now Volvo says “Goodbye Canada, hello Mexico”.
This government walked away, making no contingency plans for what happens next. These workers are afraid for their future and their families' future.
Volvo told the workers that if they uttered a bad word about the plant closing they would lose their severance.
Now I understand Volvo plans to deny severance to compensate for years of work if an employee is lucky enough to find another job.
Now we have an occupied plant and police involvement.
In September I asked the industry minister to get involved in finding solutions to the Volvo mess. I and the people involved in this crisis are still waiting.