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Steel and Aluminum Industry

During question period, the House discussed the steel industry and trade pressures. Jason Groleau of the Conservatives said the United States protects its steel market with high tariffs while Canada allows other countries to flood its market with cheap steel, and cited a Quebec company that reported non-compliant foreign garage doors containing banned substances entering Canada; he asked the government to defend Canadian steel businesses. Liberal ministers replied that the government is working daily to protect the steel sector, that it has acted against unfair foreign trade and offered support for workers and businesses, and pointed to a high-speed rail project they said would create jobs and benefit steel producers in Quebec. Mélanie Joly offered to work with the member on specific cases.Written by AI from the debate. Updated .

Official text

4 statements

Jason Groleau

Conservative
“The United States uses high taxes to protect its steel market from Asian imports, but Canada does nothing. Other countries are flooding our market with cheap steel. I want the government to defend Canadian steel businesses.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, over the past few days, we have met with dozens of businesses across Quebec regarding the CUSMA review. The situation is clear: This Liberal government has completely abandoned businesses in the steel industry. The United States is protecting its steel market with tariffs of up to 100% on Asian imports. What are the Liberals doing here in Canada? They are doing nothing at all. Worse still, they are letting Asian countries dump their steel products here and flood our Canadian market. Will this Liberal government put its foot down and defend the Canadian steel industry?

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Steven MacKinnon

Liberal
“The Conservatives say they support small businesses and steel makers, but they oppose our high-speed train project. That project will help steel producers, connect Quebec's four biggest cities, and create thousands of jobs for small businesses.”

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    None of this answer addressed the specific question that was asked.

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  • Government answer in Question Period

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    Much of this statement went to praise, blame, greetings, routine procedure or general stories rather than reasons, requests or specific points.

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Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, it is funny to be sitting here listening to the Conservatives talk about SMEs when they are against the high-speed rail project that will create thousands of jobs in SMEs across Quebec. It is funny to hear them talk about steel when we are planning a project that is incredibly promising for steel producers. It is mind-boggling to hear the Conservatives taking a stand against a transformative project that will improve mobility, connect the four biggest cities in Quebec and create thousands of jobs for our SMEs. It is quite ironic that they are standing up to talk about what our SMEs are experiencing.

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Jason Groleau

Conservative
“Asian countries are dumping steel in Canada, and foreign garage doors with banned toxic materials are entering the country. A local business warned the government, but the Liberals have done nothing to stop it. I want the government to protect our businesses and people.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, there is nothing funny about it. As I said, the Liberals are allowing Asian countries to dump their steel here. Garaga, a company in the Beauce region, sent emails to the Liberal government with evidence that non-compliant garage doors from Asia containing toxic substances banned in Canada are entering the country. What have the Liberals done about it? They have not done a thing yet. They are letting them come in. Garaga just has to fend for itself. After a decade of failures, the only thing this Liberal government has managed to do is put Canadians in debt and hurt our businesses. Will the Liberals wake up and take care of our people?

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Mélanie Joly

Liberal
“Our government is protecting Canadian steel workers and mills. We stopped unfair foreign trade, and we are giving money to help workers and businesses. I am ready to work with the member to fix any specific problem.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, we are taking care of our people. That is why Quebeckers and Canadians trust us. The Prime Minister, the Minister of Finance, the Minister responsible for Canada-U.S. Trade and I work every day to protect people in the steel sector. Among other things, we have protected the steel sector by preventing all forms of dumping. If my colleague wishes to raise a particular issue, we are ready to work with him and with all steel producers in Canada because we have to protect our factories and steel mills. At the same time, we are providing funding to help our workers and our businesses.

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