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Hello everyone.
Thank you, Minister Bains. It’s great to be here with you, as well as Minister Anand, and Jerry Dias, the President of Unifor, at the Ford Connectivity and Innovation Centre.
As you can see, we’re joined virtually by Premier Ford in Oakville—Doug it’s always good to see you—along with our Member of Parliament for Oakville North–Burlington, Pam Damoff, and Ontario Minister Fedeli.
We also have the Member of the Provincial Parliament for Oakville, Stephen Crawford, and the President and CEO of Ford Canada, Dean Stoneley. Thank you so much for all your leadership in this, Dean, as well.
For too many Canadians, this pandemic has meant worrying about their job or being laid off.
Everyone deserves a good job they can rely on.
That’s why two weeks ago, in the Speech from the Throne, our government outlined a plan to create and protect thousands of good, middle-class jobs and build a stronger, more resilient economy by investing in the future.
Just last week we announced a $10 billion infrastructure plan that will create tens of thousands of positions right across the country. And today, we’re taking another step forward.
The Government of Canada, in partnership with the Government of Ontario and Ford Canada, is investing $1.8 billion to transition Ford’s Oakville Assembly Plant into making zero-emission electric vehicles.
The federal government will contribute $295 million toward this project, and the Government of Ontario will do the same.
Today’s announcement secures over 5,000 good, middle-class jobs, and is a major vote of confidence in our auto sector.
For people in Oakville, Windsor–Essex, and Ford’s entire production line, I know this is big news.
This is just one of the first steps to build a next-generation auto industry. And we have the resources to do that.
From aluminum from Quebec to nickel from Ontario, this investment will make a huge impact throughout the supply chain, including the many, many auto parts suppliers throughout the regions. And it positions our workers for success, while keeping us competitive as we grow the economy.
The market for electric vehicles will grow in the future, and Canada has the talent to be a global leader in making batteries for electric vehicles, electrification, and clean technology.
That means we need to secure good jobs now, which will open up more opportunities for our auto sector to thrive into the future.
At the same time, by investing in technology that protects the environment, we’re also taking action on our plan to get to net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
For our auto sector, for our environment: this is a win-win.
I want to thank Premier Ford for his continued partnership, and acknowledge Jerry Dias and Minister Bains for their incredibly hard work.
This is just another example of the important progress we can make when we all work together.
Before I end, I want to thank the Bank of Montreal for asking their employees to download the COVID Alert app. And I hope that other companies will follow BMO’s lead.
As we approach the Thanksgiving weekend, the COVID Alert app is just one of the many ways that we can keep each other safe.
We also need to keep following public health guidelines.
Wash your hands.
Wear a mask.
Keep a 2-metre distance from others.
And download the COVID Alert app, which is already making a big difference all across the country.
We’ll get through this, together.