Prime Minister Justin Trudeau attacked Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre’s pledge to raise tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles by 100 per cent, but Trudeau did not respond when asked why his government had not acted sooner to introduce an additional tax.
“It’s a bit of a joke that Poilievre is suddenly talking about industry workers,” Trudeau said at an announcement of funding for the electric vehicle industry in eastern Ontario on Monday.
“For (Poilievre) to suddenly turn around and say: ‘Oh, we are worried about electric vehicles’, that is nonsense. He is looking for a political angle. Because that is all he does,” the prime minister said.
Trudeau also said that if Poilievre is elected, he would cut investment in Canada’s electric vehicle industry, a sector that continues to receive massive government subsidies.
“It would cut our investments in electric vehicles and in building an extraordinary electric vehicle supply chain in Canada, something we have been doing as a government,” the prime minister said.
The email you need to get the top stories of the day from Canada and around the world.
Receive daily national news
Receive the day’s top stories, including political, economic and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day.
The Liberal government is considering matching US tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, saying a decision will be made “soon” and that “it is clear that action, such as an additional tax, is needed.”
The Biden administration raised tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles from 25 to 100 percent last May. The Ontario government and the Canadian auto industry urged Ottawa to follow suit. The Department of Finance concluded a 30-day consultation process earlier this month.
Last week, Poilievre called for a 100% tariff increase, along with higher levies on Chinese steel and aluminum. He also accused Trudeau of “doing nothing” to protect Canadian workers from an increasingly aggressive China.
“They are doing this with the goal of crushing our steel, aluminum and auto production and taking our jobs. Trudeau has failed to protect our workers from this economic predation,” the Conservative leader said at a Hamilton steel plant.
Trudeau said he has been working “for many months” to ensure “Canada’s electric vehicle advantage is maintained” and criticized Poilievre’s EV strategy.
“For Poilievre to jump in front of the parade – or try to – is simply nonsense,” he said.
The prime minister made the remarks during a funding announcement in Napanee, Ontario, where Goodyear Canada, Ottawa and Ontario pledged more than $500 million to modernize a plant that produces tires for electric vehicles.
A report from last June by the Parliamentary Budget Bureau (PBO) estimates that federal and provincial governments have injected up to $52.5 billion into the sector.
Last March, Canada reached an agreement with Volkswagen to distribute $13.2 billion in subsidies for batteries produced at a future plant in St. Thomas, Ontario.
Stellantis later sought a similar deal for a plant it is building in Windsor, Ontario, ultimately securing a $15 billion deal.
The PBO says it could take until 2043 for Ottawa and Ontario to break even on the two battery agreements.
The subsidies for both plants are intended to mirror incentives offered by the United States through the Inflation Reduction Act, a law passed in 2022 that makes significant investments in the green economy.
— with files from The Canadian Press
© 2024 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
