Mr. Speaker, it sounds like the minister is trying to have it both ways, downplaying his announcement, and for good reason.
After five years of hollowing out Canada's energy industry, the Liberals have now set their sights on our manufacturers. Plastic manufacturers employ thousands of blue-collar workers across the country, including in my home region of Atlantic Canada. When the federal government's pandemic procurement plan failed to deliver needed protective products, Canada's plastic manufacturers stepped in and produced the PPE that we need to stay safe.
Now Ottawa wants to call these jobs toxic. Unionized workers across the country want to know why the Liberals keep attacking their families' paycheques and livelihood.