Goldie Ghamari - October 03, 2018


Question Period - International Trade and the USMCA


Episode Stats


Length

3 minutes

Words per minute

137.06

Word count

465

Sentence count

29


Summary

Summaries generated with gmurro/bart-large-finetuned-filtered-spotify-podcast-summ .

USMCA is a step in the right direction, but I understand that it does not remove the remaining steel and aluminum tariffs. Could the Minister of Finance please discuss what is being done to address these tariffs? The USMCA comes after months of uncertainty and tariffs that have placed an enormous strain on Ontario's businesses.

Transcript

Transcript generated with Whisper (turbo).
00:00:00.000 Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is for the Minister of Finance.
00:00:04.480 Last night, the federal government and the United States reached a free trade deal,
00:00:09.200 now referred to as a United States, Mexico and Canada Agreement.
00:00:13.920 The USMCA comes after months of uncertainty and tariffs,
00:00:18.480 tariffs that have placed an enormous strain on Ontario's businesses.
00:00:22.640 While the agreement is a step in the right direction,
00:00:25.520 I understand that it does not remove the remaining steel and aluminum tariffs.
00:00:30.640 Could the Minister please discuss what is being done to address these tariffs?
00:00:34.720 The Minister of Finance.
00:00:38.000 Thank you, Speaker, and to the member from Carleton.
00:00:40.960 From day one, our government, under the leadership of Premier Ford,
00:00:45.920 has offered our full support to the federal partners throughout the trade negotiations.
00:00:51.840 Our number one priority was making sure a deal got done that protected Ontario workers and Ontario industries.
00:01:00.000 While we are cautiously optimistic that the USMCA agreement will create continued opportunities,
00:01:08.640 we remain concerned, Speaker, about the remaining steel and aluminum tariffs.
00:01:13.600 These tariffs have cost business thousands.
00:01:17.260 Take Honda Canada as one example.
00:01:19.460 These tariffs have cost them hundreds of thousands of dollars to date.
00:01:24.420 We need to create and protect good jobs here in Ontario, and our government at the moment will be speaking directly with industry representatives from Ontario's steel, aluminum, auto and agricultural sectors to determine the impacts of this deal.
00:01:39.740 Through you, Mr. Speaker.
00:01:46.360 Thank you to the Minister for outlining the steps this government took to get a deal done.
00:01:50.840 Many businesses and workers in Ontario depend on free and open trade with the U.S. It is
00:01:56.300 great to hear the work our government did to protect Ontario's jobs.
00:02:00.860 Our government has heard from businesses that it is hard for them to remain competitive
00:02:04.560 in today's business climate.
00:02:06.500 Could the minister please inform the legislature of the next steps regarding the implementation
00:02:11.320 of the USMCA?
00:02:13.320 Our government has been standing up for the people since day one, and we will continue
00:02:22.100 to do so.
00:02:23.420 It is more important than ever to open Ontario for business and create and protect the good
00:02:30.360 jobs for the people.
00:02:32.320 Once again, we are cautiously optimistic that the USMCA agreement will create continued
00:02:38.660 opportunities, and we remain concerned about the remaining steel and aluminum tariffs.
00:02:45.260 Both Ontario and our partners to the south succeed when we can create trade easily.
00:02:53.320 Ontario does $389 billion worth of trade with the US.
00:02:59.220 So while we wait to receive the full text of the deal, we're calling for assurances
00:03:04.080 from the federal government that any sectors in the province that are negatively affected
00:03:09.680 by federal negotiating decisions will be provided with financial assistance and transitional
00:03:16.400 support.
00:03:18.180 Our government will continue to vigorously defend and advance our interests.