With the future of the Stellantis/LG battery plant still up in the air, Windsor-West MP Brian Masse is once again calling on the government to develop a national auto strategy.
Construction of the facility was halted over two weeks ago when the companies accused the federal government of not delivering on its commitments. Many believe those commitments include matching incentives available to the company in the US through the Inflation Reduction Act and matching the subsidy promised to the Volkswagen facility in St. Thomas.
"It is political malpractice to put at risk the investment, jobs, and the resources of the local municipality and bargaining efforts of workers and Unifor to help secure this plant from Stellantis-LG. Windsor, which has been the automotive capital of Canada for more than 100 years, needs to be treated equally to St. Thomas," said Masse.
He believes a lot of this uncertainty could have been avoided if the country had an auto strategy in place.
"As New Democrats we have called for an auto-policy for decades that has investment tied to workers jobs, worker's wages, commitments of research and development and ensuring that we're actually going to see those things accountable to the public," said Masse.
Masse said he is counting on the federal and provincial government to make a deal with Stellantis and LG that ensures Windsor has a place in the auto industry for another 100 years.
