Ng 'disappointed' in Biden's Buy American tax credit for auto sector

Ottawa -

Canada’s international trade minister Mary Ng says she’s “disappointed” with U.S. President Joe Biden’s newly unveiled budget framework that outlines a Buy American strategy for the auto sector.

In an interview on CTV News Channel’s Power Play, Ng said what was released doesn’t reflect the two countries’ integrated supply chains.

“Particularly in automobiles. But I would also say that today is a framework and there is legislative work that will continue and I, along with my colleagues, are going to be working with the Americans and we hope to make sure that in legislation that this will be rectified,” she said.

Biden laid out his Build Back Better framework Thursday, a plan he promises will create millions of jobs, with an electric vehicle tax credit on U.S. manufactured cars.

Ng had warned her U.S. counterparts in a letter obtained by Reuters last week that such a provision could harm the North American auto industry and fall foul of trade agreements.

She said this would raise the risk of severe economic harm and tens of thousands of job losses in one of Canada’s largest manufacturing sectors, adding that U.S. companies and workers would not be immune from the fallout.

The letter also said that the "proposals are inconsistent with U.S. obligations under the United States Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) and the World Trade Organization."

Conservative MP Michael Chong says the move shows the government doesn’t have a solid relationship with the Biden administration.

“We’re now nine months into these Buy American provisions and there’s no sign that the Trudeau government is getting anywhere in negotiating to lift these Buy American provisions,” he said on a separate interview on CTV News Channel’s Power Play on Thursday.

“This is very, very concerning.”

With a file from Reuters.