The lobby group representing Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis in Canada endorsed the Conservative Party’s auto pact proposal on Sunday.
Brian Kingston, president and CEO of the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers’ Association (CVMA) said the plan recognises that North American integration — not diversification toward China — is the foundation of the country’s auto industry.
Kingston wrote on X that the policies outlined by Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre “recognise this reality and aim to make it more attractive to build cars in Canada.”
“North American integration has underpinned Canada’s auto industry for over 60 years,” Kingston wrote. “Diversification is not an option.”
Poilievre cited the X post on Sunday, writing: “BREAKING: Automotive association says Conservative Auto Pact Plan would bring production home to Canada.”
The endorsement is significant because the CVMA represents the three Detroit automakers that have historically dominated Canadian manufacturing — Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis.
Kingston had previously described the Conservative approach as “bang on” in a CTV News interview in late February, when Poilievre first outlined the concept in a Toronto speech.
Consistent Opposition
The CVMA’s support for the Conservative plan is consistent with the organisation’s stance since January, when Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government signed a trade deal with Beijing allowing up to 49,000 Chinese-built EVs into Canada at a 6.1% tariff.
On the day the deal was announced, the CVMA issued a joint statement with its US counterpart, the American Automotive Policy Council, expressing concern.
“The American Automotive Policy Council and the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers’ Association are concerned with today’s announcement that Canada will introduce a quota for Chinese electric vehicles,” the groups said on January 16.
“Today’s action has the potential to undermine Canada’s auto sector and presents risks to the future of the integrated North American auto supply chain,” CVMA added.
The groups called for cooperation, saying they “stand ready to work with the government on the overarching objectives of protecting the integrated North American market and supporting American and Canadian auto jobs and investment.”
“We stand ready to work with the government on the overarching objectives of protecting the integrated North American market and supporting American and Canadian auto jobs and investment,” the statement concluded.
What the Conservatives Proposed
Poilievre unveiled the full plan in Windsor on Sunday after meeting with senior executives from GM and Ford in Detroit over the weekend.
The centrepiece is a dollar-for-dollar production-to-sales matching rule: for every car produced in Canada, the same manufacturer would earn the right to sell a car from a CUSMA partner duty-free.
The plan also calls for removing the 5% GST from Canadian-made vehicles, scrapping the C$5,000 federal EV purchase rebate, eliminating the zero-emission vehicle mandate, aligning tariffs on China with the United States, and banning Chinese and Russian-connected software from vehicles sold in Canada.
Poilievre said the goal is to double Canadian vehicle production from 1.2 million to two million units over the next decade.
The Industry Divide
The CVMA’s endorsement highlights a growing divide in Canada’s auto policy landscape.
Kingston’s members — Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis — operate plants in Ontario and depend on tariff-free access to the US market.
On the other side, Ottawa’s strategy under Carney has courted Chinese manufacturers.
BYD, Chery, and Geely are all preparing to enter the Canadian market under the quota by year-end.
Lotus, the Geely-controlled British brand, told the Globe and Mail this week that it expects to begin delivering its Chinese-made Eletre SUV in Canada in the third quarter.
Industry Minister Mélanie Joly has separately pushed for Chinese EV manufacturers to form joint ventures with Canadian parts suppliers such as Magna International.
Magna currently assembles three models for the Chinese carmaker XPeng at its Austrian plant in Graz.
BYD‘s executive VP Stella Li told Bloomberg last week that a joint venture structure would not work and that the company would insist on owning any Canadian facility outright.
Honda has recently said it continues to evaluate its commitment to a suspended C$15 billion EV investment in Ontario, while telling Automotive News that it would revisit the timeline in 2027.
What Comes Next
Poilievre is continuing his first US trip as Conservative leader this week, with stops in Houston, Austin, and New York.
Trade talks between Ottawa and Washington resumed on March 7 after a five-month suspension triggered by Trump’s reaction to an Ontario government anti-tariff advertisement during the World Series, as reported by CBC News.
The USMCA review is set to begin on July 1.
