In a bid to coordinate and optimize strategies affecting Ontario’s auto manufacturing sector, the province and the federal government have announced a new joint task force. This comes as pressures from the U.S. and China continue to cause upheaval within Ontario’s auto manufacturing industry.
It also comes, not coincidentally, in the wake of the recently announced deal between the federal government and China that will see 49,000 Chinese-made EVs allowed into Canada exempt from the current 100-percent tariffs on imports from that country. Instead, a much lower 6.1-percent levy will apply.
The announcement was made in Toronto by federal Industry Minister Mélanie Joly, Ontario Premier Doug Ford and Vic Fedeli, the province’s Economic Development Minister. Joly explained that the new task force, currently still in the process of being established, will coordinate investment strategy, safeguard jobs and guide future decisions related to electrification within the auto sector.
“The idea of this auto task force will be about looking at future strategic investments and making sure also that we protect our workforce, in particular unionized workforce. And also making sure that trade works for workers and that they don’t feel that it’s going against them.”
- Federal Industry Minister Mélanie Joly
Focus on job protection
The minister said discussions have included Lana Payne, president of the Unifor auto workers’ union that represents over 320,000 workers in Canada. Protection of jobs is clearly a big focus for the latter, as it is for Ontario Premier Ford, who has lambasted the Carney government for opening the door to imports of potentially low-priced Chinese-made EVs.
Ford was more conciliatory during the announcement of the task force this week: “I want to move forward and really focus on the existing auto manufacturers here,” he said, adding that cooperation between the two levels of government is essential for Canadian auto manufacturing to survive in the current environment.
Citing a need on the part of all players to be open-minded, Mélanie Joly said during the announcement that she also already had discussions with Chinese automakers BYD and Chery, as well as with traditional manufacturers like Hyundai and Volkswagen, about potentially setting up assembly operations in Canada.