1/24/2018 Deep concern in Windsor over trade deal, skipped ministerial meeting Windsor Star Windsor 'deeply concerned' with new TPP trade deal, skipped meeting with minister "Disappointed and deeply concerned." After surprise announcement of new TPP deal, Canada's international trade minister skips Windsor meet. K E L LY STEELE, WINDSOR S TA R Published on: January 23, 2018 Last Updated: January 23, 2018 8:26 PM EST Within hours of Canada s surprise announcement Tuesday of a revised Trans-Pacific Partnership trading deal, International Trade Minister FrancoisPhilippe Champagne skipped a scheduled meeting http://windsorstar.com/news/local-news/windsor-deeply-concerned-with-new-tpp-trade-deal-skipped-meeting-with-minister 1/10
in Windsor with business and labour leaders representing the important local auto industry. His timing couldn t have been worse. While the 11-nation deal from which the United States has pulled out is being lauded by leaders in other sectors of Canada s economy, those in the auto sector have grave concerns. We are disappointed and deeply concerned about the impact this could have on our automotive and steel sector, said Matt Marchand, president and CEO of Windsor-Essex Regional Chamber of Commerce. We ve got the best business community. We ve got the best entrepreneurs. We ve got the best labour community. We can compete against anyone and be successful, but exporting our high-paying manufacturing jobs to Asia is not something that we should be pursuing. Marchand was among local oøcials who gathered to meet with the minister in Windsor on Tuesday afternoon and were left cooling their heels after finding out at the last minute that he d missed his flight. We are stuck in Toronto. Mainly developments overnight and (Tuesday) morning have caused him to be on the phone with his counterparts in Tokyo. And, unfortunately, we tried to race to the airport, but we didn t quite make it, Champagne s spokesman, Joe Pickerill, told the Star. Thrilled to announce that Canada + the 10 remaining members have signed the Comprehensive & Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership #CTPP, Champagne tweeted at 11:24 a.m on Tuesday. Canada can and will work hard to set the terms of trade so the middle class can compete and win on the world stage. http://windsorstar.com/news/local-news/windsor-deeply-concerned-with-new-tpp-trade-deal-skipped-meeting-with-minister 2/10
Minister of International Trade Francois-Philippe Champagne speaks to press about the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, in Toronto on Jan. 23, 2018. C H R I S T O P H E R K T S A R O V / T H E C A NA D I A N P R E S S Shortly after, Champagne was supposed to be in Windsor conducting a roundtable discussion with the Canadian Association of Mold Makers and then taking a tour of Ford s Essex Engine Plant. Minutes before the minister s scheduled 4 p.m meeting at the Ford plant, company and union executives were waiting for him when they finally got a phone call letting them know he wasn t coming. This is really disappointing on all sides, said John D Agnolo, president of Unifor Local 200, which represents Ford workers in Windsor. Ford Motor Company has set up a meeting and you have all these people waiting. It s just ignorant. I<C8K<; Canada and 10 other countries agree to new Trans-Pacific trade pact, without the U.S. (http://windsorstar.com/news/economy/canada-and-rest-of-trans-pacific- partnership-agree-to-revised-text-say-reports/wcm/57b64e39-90d1-4614-9c29-991d431bf810) http://windsorstar.com/news/local-news/windsor-deeply-concerned-with-new-tpp-trade-deal-skipped-meeting-with-minister 3/10
The federal government s decision to suddenly accept the new Trans-Pacific Partnership deal without consulting or communicating with the aúected sectors and unions is stunning, D Agnolo said. We were absolutely dumbfounded and disgusted by the fact that they did not sit down with us, and why this is happening I can t answer. An agreement like this just doesn t make sense. And it won t benefit our community or Canada. It s an unfair trade agreement. Unifor issued a statement Tuesday calling it deeply flawed. Canada has made major concessions that will negatively aúected the auto and dairy industries, cultural sector and access to aúordable medicines, it said. Unifor president Jerry Dias met with Champagne to discuss the union s concerns about the Trans-Pacific deal Monday, the statement said. There was no indication from the minister, at that time, that a final deal was imminent. Ford of Canada is also very concerned and disappointed by the government s decision to sign onto the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement without consulting the industry, said Carolyn Hughes, the company s vicepresident of government relations. Ford is concerned that the current agreement is going to reduce the competitiveness of its current operations, she said, noting vehicle standards, taxation policies, documentation requirements and inspection rules are diúerent for each country. We want to build cars in Canada for export, Hughes said. We do that every day with Europe, South America and Asia. We know that our men and women can compete with anyone in the world if we have a level playing field. We really want to work with the minister to make this a deal that works for auto and, quite honestly, if it doesn t work for auto we need to take it oú the table until we have a deal that does work for auto. Jonathon Azzopardi, president of Laval Tool, had been planning to meet with Champagne to talk about how trade deals aúect mould makers during a roundtable discussion at his company s plant in Oldcastle. We did not see this coming, Azzopardi said of the Trans-Pacific Partnership deal. From our standpoint, we believe that Canada holding its ground on the automotive side of the TPP meant that they were going to hold oú on signing http://windsorstar.com/news/local-news/windsor-deeply-concerned-with-new-tpp-trade-deal-skipped-meeting-with-minister 4/10
this agreement until after NAFTA was in play. As an industry we would have agreed with that. That was a good negotiating move on their behalf. But signing this in advance of that is quite a big surprise to us. It is too early to know which industries will be hurt and which will benefit, he said. But I can tell you right now that those other countries that are in the agreement are not interested in buying our products. I can say that with a fairly high degree of certainty. The U.S. is pushing for a new NAFTA that increases domestic content requirements and keeps Chinese parts out of North America but the revamped TPP deal moves Canada and Mexico the opposite way, reducing local requirements and letting more product from non-tpp countries like China into the supply chain, Flavio Volpe, of the Auto Parts Manufacturers Association, told The Canadian Press. This could not be a dumber move at a more important time, he said. It s unfair to make Canadian companies compete with those in countries which have lower standards for labour relations, health, safety and the environment, said the local chamber s Marchand. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau s quick agreement Tuesday to the Trans- Pacific Partnership deal not long after he walked away from signing it is proof he is all about politics and showmanship rather than taking care of Canadians, said Brian Hogan, president of the Windsor and District Labour Council. This could be a real big loss for this area, especially the auto sector, he said. ksteeele@postmedia.com (mailto:ksteeele@postmedia.com) twitter.com/winstarkelly (https://twitter.com/winstarkelly) KI<E;@E>JKFI@<J () Windsor 'deeply con new TPP trade deal, meeting with ministe http://windsorstar.com/news/local-news/windsor-deeply-concerned-with-new-tpp-trade-deal-skipped-meeting-with-minister 5/10