A group of eight Simcoe County mayors is pushing the federal government to do more to support domestic auto manufacturing, protect associated jobs, and enhance Canada’s global competitiveness in the sector.
The Simcoe Auto Mayors — representing Springwater, Adjala-Tosorontio, Innisfil, Bradford West Gwillimbury, Essa, Clearview and Penetanguishene — signed a letter Thursday during a ceremony in Alliston outlining their pitch for the Canada North Vehicles initiative.
Officials say the initiative aims to create a unifying symbol and identity for Canadian-made vehicles.
“Canadian vehicles are uniquely durable, and we all know they’re built for extreme conditions,” coalition chair and New Tecumseth Mayor Richard Norcross said during the announcement. “This is a global advantage that we have over other manufacturers.”
The symbol would be seen on any Canadian-made vehicles and other related products (like tires) as a way to market the Canadian auto industry.
Officials described it as both a branding effort and policy advocacy campaign aimed at strengthening domestic automotive manufacturing.
"The average Canadian doesn't know which models are built here in Canada and which are built abroad," Devin Ramphal, director of growth and innovation for the Town of New Tecumseth, said. "That's where we see an opportunity."
The announcement comes a week after Honda announced it was indefinitely suspending plans for a proposed $15-billion electric vehicle complex in Alliston that had the potential to create 1,000 additional manufacturing jobs.
Norcross said Honda remains “a great corporate citizen” in the region, adding the initiative had already been in development well before the automaker’s decision. However, he acknowledged the announcement accelerated the coalition’s decision to go public with its plans.
The coalition says it hopes to help spur a national discussion about how Canada approaches its automotive sector moving forward.
"We want to protect what we have, but we need to grow what we have," Norcross told Barrie360. "We want to make sure that as our children grow up, and new people move here, there are good paying jobs, and it's a great place to live."
Norcross said the coalition hopes to meet with both federal and provincial governments in the near future, with one of its primary goals being to change how hybrid vehicles are treated under Ottawa’s new greenhouse gas emissions standards strategy.
In his remarks, he specifically called on Prime Minister Mark Carney to include hybrid models in the EV sales metrics that will be measured under the new framework.
“Governments must align policy with how the market is evolving, not where it was years ago,” he said. “Manufacturers have told us they cannot honour that mandate, and if we don’t change it, there won’t be investment in Canada. As a matter of fact, we’ll lose jobs.”
In February, Carney announced Ottawa would scrap the previous EV sales mandate introduced under former prime minister Justin Trudeau in favour of a new greenhouse gas emissions standards system aimed at having electric vehicles account for 75 per cent of new vehicle sales in Canada by 2035.
The new standards, targeting the 2027 to 2032 model years, would set a maximum of 74 grams of carbon dioxide emissions per mile — or its equivalent — representing a 56.9 per cent reduction from the current federal tailpipe emissions standard of 172 grams per mile.
Under the new strategy, automakers would be incentivized to improve fuel efficiency in gas-powered vehicles while also increasing EV sales over time to meet the standard.
The coalition’s is focused specifically on integrating Canada North Vehicles into the third and fourth pillars of the federal strategy.
Officials argue that including hybrid models in the sales metrics would make Canada’s auto sector more competitive internationally.
“The best-case scenario is the strategy works and we’re able to unlock international markets and promote domestic sales of Canadian vehicles,” Ramphal said. “The worst-case scenario is we’ve collectively raised awareness for the industry.”
Ramphal also pointed to Canada’s longstanding reputation as an auto manufacturing country, particularly in comparison to the United States.
Norcross added that the Simcoe Auto Mayors coalition has received support from multiple automakers operating in Ontario, though he declined to identify them.
