Thank you, Mr. Chair and committee members. I appreciate the opportunity to be here and to take part in your study on the CUSMA review.

Since the Auto Pact of 1965, Canada has reaped enormous economic and social benefits by being part of the integrated auto sector in North America. Through common regulations and competitive supports, we manufacture and sell into a market that accounts for annual sales of nearly 28 million vehicles. It's this integration that has allowed Ford, General Motors and Stellantis to make historic job-creating investments into Canada to produce electric vehicles and batteries.

Today, the CUSMA serves as the foundation for the integrated North American auto industry. The agreement provides certainty, reinforces the long-established integration of the auto industry supply chain necessary for its competitiveness and facilitates regulatory alignment of vehicle technical regulations with the U.S. This gives Canadian consumers access to leading vehicle safety technologies, emissions technologies and fuel efficiency technologies at the lowest possible cost.

The CUSMA also provides Canadian manufacturers with duty-free access to the much larger U.S. market. Last year, $51 billion in vehicles was exported to the United States, making this our second-largest goods export. With the upcoming review in 2026, Canada must do everything possible to protect our preferential access to the U.S. market and support the integrated supply chain.

This can be achieved by ensuring that our trade and regulatory policies in the automotive sector are aligned with the U.S. Given the once-in-a-generation transformation to electrification under way right now, as well as threats posed by countries like China, the consistency of automotive trade and regulatory policies across the larger North American market has never been more important. We recommend the following actions.

Number one, enhance regulatory alignment with the United States. Our seat at the North American automotive table and the hundreds of thousands of jobs this industry provides depend on continued regulatory alignment of vehicle safety and emissions standards.

The federal government's recently implemented zero-emission vehicle sales mandate is a significant departure from the long-standing Canadian approach of alignment to the U.S. This is a direct challenge to the integration with the U.S. through CUSMA and our competitiveness as a ZEV manufacturing jurisdiction. By prioritizing zero-emission vehicle sales over the development of a North American supply chain, the mandate opens Canada to subsidized or dumped electric vehicles from China and other non-market economies. This misguided sales mandate must be scrapped in advance of the 2026 CUSMA review.

Number two, strengthen Canada's role in the EV supply chain. With the industry transitioning to electrification, Canada must move quickly to grow and diversify our production of critical minerals. This will strengthen our role in the auto supply chain, enhance North American security and increase trilateral trade. It will also enhance Canada's importance at the CUSMA table as the U.S. moves aggressively to build a domestic EV supply chain.

Number three, we need to improve our transportation system reliability. Automotive companies operate very complex logistical plans that ensure scheduled uninterrupted delivery to and from auto plants across the continent. As a result, the automotive supply chain depends on reliable and efficient transportation logistics.

Over the past few years, transportation disruptions have occurred with increasing frequency in Canada, doing significant damage to the North American economy. In advance of this review, we need to demonstrate to our North American partners that Canada is a reliable jurisdiction for the production and movement of goods.

Before I conclude, I want to take a moment to address the recent increase in U.S. tariffs on Chinese EVs and the implications for Canada and CUSMA. Canada cannot be out of step with its largest trading partner and strongest ally on China as we approach the CUSMA review. There is simply too much at stake for the automotive industry and the broader Canadian economy if Washington perceives Canada as misaligned.

We should be prepared to strengthen our trade defences in response to a surge in dumped Chinese EVs into the market and, at a minimum, we must work closely with our American partners to address potential security threats posed by Chinese-manufactured connected vehicles. Given the highly integrated nature of the North American highway network, the security of Canadian roads is the security of American roads.

Thank you very much for the opportunity. I look forward to your questions.