QUESTION PERIOD — International Trade
Trade Diversification
October 8, 2026
Government leader, yesterday, the Foreign Affairs Committee heard from the Canadian Association of Mold Makers. Their witnesses said that members are evaluating all options amid trade uncertainty with the United States, including where future investment should go, and in some cases, whether operations need to move south.
Leader, we all know who is in the White House. We understand that. However, this government’s answer has been to talk about trade diversification, while manufacturers are telling us that the United States is still, by far, their primary market and will be for years to come after Donald Trump is gone.
We are all hearing now from local manufacturers and companies in our ridings and regions across the country that are in the midst of making some tough decisions. They don’t have time for the implementation of this market diversification plan because it will take months and, in some cases, years. They want to know what the government’s plan is immediately in order to get safe access to markets to sell their goods.
The government has a very clear plan to protect our industries and our small- and medium-sized enterprises to attract investment. There is constant discussion between the Prime Minister and business leaders and entrepreneurs here in Canada to make them aware that we are doing everything possible to maintain investment in Canada and to maintain their capacity for their industry to grow here in Canada and to diversify our economy. That will benefit those enterprises — small, medium and big corporations as well. The government is committed to that. Our plan is working, and the Prime Minister will continue to do that — namely in the coming week with the European Union — to continue to diversify our economy.
Government leader, companies need to make decisions now. The United States of America is their largest market. We all hear cases where companies are under pressure right now to take decisions in terms of where they are manufacturing. The United States of America, even in the midst of this crisis, still will consume 200% more of our goods than the whole world market combined.
The question is very simple. The government needs to take steps now to solve the problem. We’re in an emergency. This diversification idea is something that might take years. These companies will go bankrupt by the time we even build the infrastructure —
Thank you, Senator Housakos.
We’re committed not to let them go bankrupt. That’s the reason why we introduced the Productivity Super-Deduction to acquire factories and equipment faster. We signed a foreign investment promotion and protection agreement with the United Arab Emirates, or U.A.E.
The Prime Minister convened the first Canada Investment Summit that brought investors from 30 countries managing over $100 trillion in assets to invest here and to help our productivity, our companies and all Canadians.
