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Steel and Aluminum Industry

During question period, the steel and aluminum industry was raised in a series of exchanges between the Conservative leader and the Prime Minister. The Conservative leader said a major LNG project was buying steel from China instead of from Canadian mills, pointed to layoffs at Stelco in Hamilton, and asked the government to require Canadian steel in Canadian projects and to buy more domestically. The Prime Minister said the LNG Canada project includes 15,000 tonnes of Canadian steel, that its second phase was approved quickly, pointed to the Pacific Link pipeline as another buyer of Canadian steel, said the American owner of Stelco broke promises to Hamilton workers and would face legal action, and invited the opposition to support the government’s Building Canada Strong Act (Bill C-39).Written by AI from the debate. Updated .

Official text

6 statements

Pierre Poilievre

Conservative
“The Prime Minister is allowing a new gas project to use steel from China instead of steel from Canadian workers. I want him to explain why he is sending these jobs out of the country.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister loves to take credit for projects that were approved before he ever became Prime Minister. Soon enough, he is going to be announcing that he is granting a permit for the Canadian Pacific Railway. Speaking of those projects, not only has he failed to buy Canadian; he now cannot build Canadian. Just after the announcement that, after a 10-year delay, LNG phase two is going ahead, we now learn that the steel will not come from the out-of-work Hamilton steelworkers. It will come from China. Why is the Prime Minister sending our steel jobs to Beijing?

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Mark Carney

Liberal
“The LNG Canada project is a success that makes our country richer and more independent. It will use 15,000 tonnes of Canadian steel.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, I am glad the Leader of the Opposition has brought up the second-largest private sector investment in Canadian history, an LNG Canada success story that will make this country more independent and more prosperous. It is a project that will have 15,000 tonnes of Canadian steel in the broader ecosystem. This government is building Canada strong.

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Pierre Poilievre

Conservative
“A major Canadian project is buying its steel from China instead of Canada, right after hundreds of Hamilton steelworkers were laid off. The Prime Minister is letting cheap Chinese steel take jobs from Canadian workers. I want this project to be built with Canadian steel.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, the principal supplier of steel for the project will, again, be China. That is something we found out the very week the legendary company Stelco announced it was going to be laying off 350 people and idling its plant in Hamilton. The Prime Minister puts Canadian steelworkers out of a job and grants a permit for Beijing to dump its artificially subsidized steel on Canadian soil. Why can we not build Canadian with Canadian steel?

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Mark Carney

Liberal
“We are supporting Canadian steel by using it in the Pacific Link pipeline. Also, the American owner of Stelco broke its promises to Hamilton workers, and we will take them to court over it.”

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Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, there is a chance to build with Canadian steel. It is called the Pacific link pipeline. The Leader of the Opposition might be sleeping and he might be in the ground, but we are putting Canadian steel in the ground with the Pacific link pipeline. The workers of Stelco deserve better from their American-owned parent, which made representations. This government will pursue it to the full force of the law to honour those commitments.

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Pierre Poilievre

Conservative

Linked statement

“The government is buying more steel from an American company and allowing a major project to use steel from China. I want the Prime Minister to put Canadian workers first and use Canadian steel for projects in Canada.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, of course they deserve better from their American owner. Canadians deserve better than a Prime Minister who sends their tax dollars down to reward those same companies with purchases up 50% as a share of government purchases. We then have LNG phase two. It took the Liberals 10 years to get it going. Those steelworkers, who thought they might have a hope to supply the bones of that project, learned that the Prime Minister has sold them out and granted a permit for that steel to come from China. Why will he not put Canadians first, with Canadian steel in Canadian projects?

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Mark Carney

Liberal
“The Coastal GasLink project uses 15,000 tonnes of Canadian steel, and its second phase was approved quickly. We are helping build Canada. The opposition should support this bill to keep building projects moving.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, there is 15,000 tonnes of Canadian steel in Coastal GasLink for LNG phase two. LNG phase two was approved less than two years from the start of LNG phase one. The Leader of the Opposition and all of the members of his party have a chance to stand up for Bill C-39 to get Canada building strong right across this country. That is what this government is doing.

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