Doug Ford says he wants strong response to tariffs from Carney amid Stellantis decision

Premier Doug Ford said he has been given assurances by the president of Stellantis that the Brampton auto plant will continue operations in the future following an announcement by the automaker Tuesday that it would be shifting production of the Jeep Compass to a U.S. facility.

Stellantis had temporarily paused production of the new electric SUV at the Williams Parkway plant in the wake of Trump’s initial tariff threats. Production was set to go ahead later this year.

But in a release on Tuesday, the automaker confirmed it would instead be investing US$600 million to reopen its Belvidere Assembly Plant in Illinois “to expand production,” creating 3,300 new jobs in the U.S. by 2027.

“I had a conversation with the president of Stellantis yesterday. He said, well they are going to postpone it for a year. They are going to find a new model,” Ford said, adding that there are plans to add a third shift in Windsor that would potentially allow 1,500 of the 3,000 impacted employees to transfer to that facility.

“I want to keep the Brampton plant open, no matter what. He’s given me his word, they are going to keep it open. They are going to see what products they are going to put in there.”

In a statement to CTV News Toronto, Stellantis said Canada is “very important” to the company, pointing to its 100-year history in the country.

“We are investing. We are adding a third shift to the Windsor Assembly Plant to support increased demand of all versions of the Chrysler Pacifica and the new SIXPACK-powered Dodge Charger Scat Pack and R/T models,” the company wrote.

“We have plans for Brampton and will share them upon further discussions with the Canadian government.”

On Wednesday, the federal government said it was considering taking legal action against the automaker.

In a letter to CEO Antonio Filosa, Industry Minister Mélanie Joly wrote Stellantis made important commitments to Canada and its workforce and if the company “choose not to respect its obligations, we will act in the interests of all Canadians and hold the company to full account, and exercise all options, including legal.”

‘We just can’t smile while they steal our jobs’

Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown says the decision by Stellantis appears to be harbinger for the rest of Canada’s auto manufacturing industry if Canada does not fight back against Trump’s tariffs.

“When we express concerns about these Trump tariffs, it is real families that are affected. And I’m worried it is not just the 3,000 workers at the Stellantis Brampton plant,” he told CP24 on Wednesday morning.

“You can see this replicated across the country if the U.S. administration is successful at taking these jobs and the associated auto parts jobs. This is a real threat to the Canadian economy.”

Brown said the future of the auto plant remains unclear and the assurances from the company provide little comfort to the workers who are impacted.

“Essentially they are being shown the door by Stellantis, who is being bullied by the Trump administration. And It’s going to hurt. It’s going to sting,” Brown said.

“Provincial and Canadian governments have put a lot of money into this company. There was a flashy announcement a few years back in Windsor where they put billions into this company for the purpose of jobs in Ontario… and I hope that the lawyers for the Government of Canada are looking at every cent that has been spent in this company to say, ‘We want it back if obligations are not upheld.’”

In a statement released Tuesday, Prime Minister Mark Carney said the federal government will “always be there” for Canadian auto workers.

“Together with the Government of Ontario and Unifor, we are working with the company to develop the right measures to protect Stellantis employees and to create new opportunities for them in and around Brampton,” Carney said.

“We have further made clear that we expect Stellantis to fulfill the undertakings they have made to the workers of Brampton.”

Ford said he will discuss the ongoing tariffs when he meets with Carney on Thursday.

“What my message to the prime minister when I meet him on Thursday is if you can’t get a deal, let’s start hitting him back. Let’s start hitting the U.S. back hard,” he said.

“We are nice, nice, nice. Play nice in the sandbox… I am sick and tired of sitting and rolling over. We need to fight back.”

‘What are we willing to fight for?’

Brown said he wants to see Canada push back against Trump’s attempts to decimate the auto industry.

“There are a lot of tools that Canada has. Canada provides significant trade to the U.S. We are their greatest trading partner,” he said.

“We just can’t smile while they steal our jobs and damage our economy.”

His comments were echoed by Lana Payne, the national president of Unifor, the union representing workers at the Brampton plant.

“The reality is we’ve been saying since the beginning of this year that this trade war would have this kind of impact if we didn’t fight back... Donald Trump has been very clear from the beginning that he was coming for our auto jobs,” she told CP24 on Wednesday.

“If we are not going to fight for the auto sector and the 150,000 direct jobs in that sector and the half a million jobs that depend on this sector in this country, what are we willing to fight for?”

Have you been impacted by the decision by Stellantis to move production of its Jeep Compass to Illinois? Are you concerned about your livelihood and what this could mean for Brampton. Share your story by emailing us at [e-mail] with your name, general location, and phone number in case we want to follow up. Your comments may be used in a future story.

With files from CTV Toronto’s Laura Sebben