Mr. Chair, it is my pleasure to participate in the debate to highlight how the government is delivering on our commitment to protect not only Canada's automotive industry but also its workers.
For decades, the Canadian auto industry has created good jobs for the middle class and stimulated economic growth that benefits all Canadians. It is truly a powerful economic engine.
Today's Canadian auto sector, like so many industries, is navigating a highly uncertain stretch of highway. The global trade landscape is rapidly changing as the U.S. fundamentally transforms all of its business relationships.
We can no longer rely on our most important trading relationship like we used to. We need to strengthen our capacity at home. Our government has taken strategic steps to help workers and businesses in the sectors most affected by U.S. tariffs. One of those, of course, is the auto industry.
Before I begin detailing our government's support for the auto sector, I will illustrate how vital it is to Canada. The industry provides approximately 125,000 direct jobs, while it supports more than 500,000 Canadians across the country. It makes up approximately 8% of Canada's manufacturing GDP and 0.7% of the country's overall GDP.
In 2024, Canada produced roughly 1.3 million light vehicles, of which approximately 1.1 million were exported to the United States.
Our government acted quickly to support Canada's auto sector as it is trying to deal with the challenges of the U.S. trade actions. Within days of the tariff imposition, our government implemented an auto remission framework that incentivized production and investment in Canada. It allowed automakers that continue to manufacture vehicles in Canada to import a set quantity of U.S.-assembled, CUSMA-compliant vehicles into our country free of countermeasure tariffs imposed by our government.
However, companies must maintain specific production levels and follow through on their planned investments in Canada. The main objective is to maintain Canada's auto manufacturing footprint and protect Canadian workers.
Our government has also shown it is willing to take decisive action to protect Canadian jobs. Earlier this fall, we announced significant reductions to the import quotas of General Motors and Stellantis. These decisive steps followed the automakers' unacceptable decisions to scale back their manufacturing presence in Canada, a move that directly breached their commitments to the country and Canadian workers.
General Motors' decision to cut production at its Oshawa and Ingersoll facilities and Stellantis' decision to cancel all production plans at its Brampton assembly plant constitute a repudiation of their commitments.
Our government has done even more to support Canada's auto industry. We are transforming our economy to build a more resilient and diversified future. As part of this effort, we are positioning our businesses to thrive. Many businesses that have relied most heavily on trade with the U.S. need temporary immediate relief from liquidity pressures. The auto sector falls into this category.
That is why our government announced last September its intent to make targeted regulatory adjustments to help the automotive sector stay competitive during this period of uncertainty caused by U.S. trade and policy measures. Changing the policy to remove the target for the 2026 model year vehicles will help reduce the economic pressure caused by tariffs.
We are taking a measured approach, supporting our industries today while keeping a clear focus on a sustainable future.
Our government responded quickly, forcefully, and decisively to the unfair tariffs the United States imposed on Canadian products.