Mr. Speaker, the hon. member is correct that during question period on May 26 he asked about the government's commitment to attracting new automotive production to Canada.
There has been a lot of discussion over the past year with various levels of government and what they are doing to attract new automotive investments in Canada. I am glad to have the opportunity to speak to this issue.
First, let me be clear that the government wants to see as much new automotive investment come to Canada as possible. The principal reason why the Canadian Automotive Partnership Council was created was to develop shared industry-government strategies to help ensure the long term growth and prosperity of Canada's automotive sector. We are working through CAPC with the assemblers, parts manufacturers, labour, and the provinces to develop a cooperative approach to addressing industry issues.
In the months which have passed since the hon. member voiced his concerns about the state of the automotive industry in Canada, there have been a number of developments which indicate that Canada continues to be an attractive location for automotive manufacturing investment.
DaimlerChrysler has recently announced that it will invest $1.4 billion to retool its Brampton assembly plant.
On September 26 Toyota held a ceremony for the production of the Lexus RX330 at its Cambridge, Ontario, plant. It will be the first ever Lexus to be built outside Japan. As noted by the Japanese and Canadian based executive of Toyota, this investment reflects directly on the government's commitment to the automotive sector.
All of Canada's five auto assemblers have current reinvestment plans.
In the auto parts sector, the news is also encouraging. Employment increased by almost 7,000 jobs in the first half of 2003, an increase of 6.9% over the last year. Total employment now stands at 106,384 jobs.
The auto industry invests in Canada because of our strong fundamentals: a highly skilled workforce; competitive labour costs; and an excellent business climate, including low inflation and interest rates, and a competitive tax regime. Canada will continue to be an excellent automotive manufacturing location, with strong performance on productivity and quality measures.
In addition, the federal government assists industry to innovate and to increase productivity and competitiveness through its many programs. A recent example of the success of this approach is the Navistar truck plant in Chatham, where the company reversed its decision to move its operations to Mexico. Instead, with the assistance of the technology partnerships Canada program, the company will be investing $270 million over 10 years in developing of state-of-the-art equipment thus guaranteeing the plant's future for years to come.
We on this side of the House recognize that Canada cannot rest on its past successes. We are continuing to work closely with the auto sector to maintain Canada's competitive advantages and to ensure that the auto companies continue to invest and grow in Canada. We are actively involved through CAPC in examining these very issues.