WINDSOR – On Thursday, May 12, the Council of Canadians will welcome the House of Commons Standing Committee on International Trade to Windsor just before planned hearings get underway on the controversial Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).
WHAT: The Council of Canadians will remind the trade committee, composed of MPs from three federal parties, about the growing opposition to the TPP. The group will set up a speakers’ corner for anyone wishing to send a video message to the committee. Following this action, Unifor, the Council of Canadians, and allies will join a rally with the Windsor and District Labour Council at 10 am EDT outside the hearing venue.
WHEN: Thursday, May 12 at 8:45 am EDT.
WHERE: Best Western Plus Waterfront Hotel, 277 Riverside Drive West (on the north side of Riverside Drive).
“A study by Tufts University shows that Canada could lose 58,000 jobs because of the TPP, many of which would be in Windsor’s auto sector,” warns Sujata Dey, Trade Campaigner with the Council of Canadians. “Why can’t we have a deal that creates economic opportunity for everyone, not just corporations?”
“I have watched as General Motors closed both plants, and Ford shed thousands of jobs in Windsor. There have also been losses in the automotive spin off companies, and only because of diversification have the effects not been more severe,” said Doug Hayes, chair of the Windsor Essex Chapter of the Council of Canadians. “We can’t afford any more auto job losses.”
The committee will hear from a hand-picked group of witnesses as part of its ongoing review of the Harper-era deal. The TPP accounts for 40 percent of the global economy, but has been negotiated with the greatest secrecy.
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