Melanie Joly insists Canadian automakers looking to export vehicles overseas
· Toronto Sun
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OTTAWA — Despite government assurances that our domestic auto industry can remain competitive by pivoting away from exporting vehicles to the United States and instead relying on exports elsewhere abroad, Canada’s industry minister was unable to say if the government did the math on this lofty goal.
While testifying Monday before the House Standing Committee on Industry and Technology, Industry Minister Melanie Joly insisted the government had been approached by automakers looking at exporting Canadian-made cars around the world — but declined to say which ones.
“Has your department done economic analysis on this business case?” Conservative MP Adam Chambers asked Joly on how viable opening up Canadian auto exports would be.
“Is there economic analysis the government has done that shows it’s viable for Canadian automakers to produce vehicles here to export them to Asia or Europe, as an example … or the Middle East?”
U.S. auto exports an ‘over dependency:’ Joly
Pressed by Chambers after Joly attempted to duck the question by invoking Prime Minister Mark Carney’s recent worldwide travels promoting Canadian industry, the minister admitted it wasn’t up to the government to determine that business case.
“I get your point, but this is not up to the government to make that assumption,” she said.
“If the companies want to do that and they’re proposing that, we will support them.”
Joly also curiously described Canada’s 90% export of domestically made cars to the U.S. as an “over dependency,” adding that some automakers are indeed looking at sending their Canadian-made cars overseas to other markets.
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Details vague during testimony
When asked by Chambers if automakers themselves are approaching the government with plans to ship Canadian-made cars overseas, Joly said “absolutely” — but refused to provide details.
“We’ve been approached by companies and I can’t say which one because obviously that is business confidential information,” Joly said.
Chambers interjected, saying that no automaker has given committee testimony or given any media interviews claiming that exporting outside of the U.S. is a viable business plan.
“I’m telling you that’s what we’re getting as information,” Joly insisted.
“We have free-trade agreements with many different markets and basically countries around the world … of course we know that the auto sector is affected by the (U.S.) tariffs, we know we need to protect the auto sector and that is why we’ll fight for it in the context of the revision of the USMCA (U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement).”