Canada’s Conservative opposition leader Pierre Poilievre on Sunday unveiled a plan to double the country’s vehicle production.
Polievre called for a tariff-free auto pact with the United States while pledging to scrap both the Liberal government’s Chinese EV import quota and its electric vehicle mandate.
The announcement was made in Windsor, Ontario — the centre of Canada’s auto industry — after Poilievre spent the weekend meeting with senior executives from General Motors and Ford in Detroit.
It was the first stop on the Conservative leader’s inaugural trip to the United States, which will continue through Houston, Austin, and New York.
“The goal is clear. We want to double our production to two million vehicles,” Poilievre said. “Anybody who says that’s not possible, remember that’s what we were making 10 years ago.”
Canadian vehicle production has fallen from over two million units to approximately 1.2 million — a decline of 7.8% in the last year alone, according to figures cited by the Conservative leader.
Auto production slumped to pre-pandemic levels despite demand remaining flat, as warned by the Bank of Montreal (BMO) earlier this week.
The Dollar-for-Dollar Rule
The centrepiece of the plan is a production-to-sales matching rule modelled on the 1965 Canada-US Auto Pact.
For every car produced in Canada, the same manufacturer would earn the right to sell a car from a CUSMA partner in Canada duty-free, on a dollar-for-dollar basis.
The rule would apply to manufacturers selling in the Canadian market, creating an incentive to locate production in the country.
“The plan that we’re putting forward allows both the United States and Canada to massively increase their production by incentivizing automakers to match a car made with a car sold,” Poilievre said.
He argued the maths works for Washington.
Canada currently produces 0.6 vehicles for every one it buys. Mexico produces 2.5 for every one it buys.
A shift to a one-for-one ratio across the continent would raise US production from 11 million to 13 million vehicles, he said.
“In other words, they would win new and increased production as a result of this plan, which is exactly the stated policy objective of the US administration,” the Conservative leader said.
Under the original Auto Pact, Canada produced three million vehicles.
That agreement was superseded by the North American Free Trade Agreement, and production has declined steadily since.
Summarising the plan, Poilievre said, “For each car manufactured in Canada, the manufacturer can sell to Canada, free of tariff, a car that comes from a partner of our association with Mexico and the United States.”
The Conservative leader called for a ban on Chinese software, matching the US.
“We will protect the North American supply chains by keeping the 75% rule in place, harmonise the North American cybersecurity rules by banning Chinese software, and align with our partners on the tariff against China to counter unfair trade and increase our negotiating leverage,” he stated.
Scrapping the EV Rebate
The plan would eliminate the C$5,000 federal EV purchase rebate introduced under the Carney government’s EV Affordability Program. Poilievre called the subsidy a handout to foreign manufacturers.
“Mark Carney is forcing these workers to pay higher taxes to fund a rebate that will not go to the vehicles that they help supply with the parts that they make here,” Poilievre said. “This is a subsidy for foreign producers to kill Canadian jobs.”
In its place, the Conservatives would remove the 5% GST from all Canadian-made vehicles. Poilievre said he would encourage provincial premiers to waive their share of the sales tax as well, potentially offering buyers a combined discount of up to 13% in provinces like Ontario.
Tesla’s Model Y this week became eligible for the C$5,000 rebate after being priced at C$49,990 — C$10 below the programme’s cap — as EV reported.
Eliminating the EV Mandate
The Conservatives would also scrap the federal zero-emission vehicle mandate entirely.
Poilievre said the current government has promised an emissions standard “that can only be met by EVs,” which he argued would shut down internal combustion engine production in Canada and prevent rural communities from buying vehicles that meet their needs.
“Even hybrids do not qualify for his emissions standards,” Poilievre said.
“Conservatives will get rid of the entire EV mandate for real so that we can compete and our people can choose what kind of cars they want to buy,” he added.
Targeting Chinese EVs
On China, the plan represents a direct reversal of the Carney government’s approach.
In January, Ottawa signed a trade deal with Beijing that allows up to 49,000 Chinese-built EVs into Canada annually at a 6.1% tariff — down from the 100% surtax imposed in October 2024.
The Conservatives would scrap that quota and align Canada’s tariffs on Chinese goods with those of the United States.
Poilievre first outlined this position in a Toronto speech two weeks ago, where he said Canada should “shut out Chinese automakers and vehicles in return for tariff-free access to the American market,” as reported by the Canadian Press.
The plan would also ban vehicles using software connected to China or Russia, creating what the Conservatives described as a harmonised North American cybersecurity and data standard.
BYD, Chery, and Geely are all preparing to enter the Canadian market under the current quota by the end of this year.
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.
Challenging Carney
Poilievre framed the entire plan as a rebuke of Prime Minister Mark Carney’s strategy, which he repeatedly called “a dangerous illusion.”
“No one with credibility in the auto sector has come forward to agree with Mark Carney that he can replace the United States by building electric vehicles for overseas markets,” Poilievre said. “There is no credible voice in the sector that lends any support to that Liberal illusion.”
He noted that the Americans buy 90% of the automobiles Canada makes, and that nearly all remaining production is sold domestically.
“There are almost no overseas exports of Canadian automobiles today, and that cannot be changed on a dime,” he said.
He cited the Japanese ambassador’s recent comments that Canada’s main value for Japanese automakers is its role as a gateway to the US market.
Honda, Toyota, and their supply chains account for more than 75% of all complete vehicles made in Canada.
Carney had promised to negotiate an agreement with President Donald Trump before July 21, 2025, Poilievre said.
Canada has since paid $2 billion in tariffs on auto exports to the United States, according to the Conservative leader.
Trade talks between Ottawa and Washington were suspended in October after Trump terminated negotiations over an anti-tariff advertisement run by the Ontario government during the World Series, as reported by CBC News.
Talks resumed for the first time on March 7 when Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc met US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer in Washington.
Job Losses
Poilievre listed a series of layoffs since auto tariffs took effect in April 2025: Stellantis Brampton (3,000), GM Oshawa (700), GM CAMI (1,000), Magna London (49), Autonium London (118), TFT Global (245), and job losses in Quebec totalling 475.
Under USMCA, vehicles shipped to the US face a 25% tariff on the value of their non-US content — meaning an Ontario-made SUV with 60% American parts would face an effective tariff of roughly 10%.
The Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers Association says 105,000 people work directly in the sector.
That figure rises to 603,000 when indirect employment is included. Ontario alone has 700 parts makers, 400 connected and autonomous vehicle firms, and 500 tool, die, and mould companies.
Stellantis has drawn particular criticism.
The company redirected planned vehicle production from its Brampton plant to the United States and sold its stake in a Windsor battery plant last month, according to Canada’s National Observer.
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told CBC earlier this year that Canada should accept “some level of high tariff” on its exports.
