Canadian NAFTA concern: Auto production tied up in red tape

WASHINGTON — Canada is voicing concerns heard from car companies that some of the rules being considered during the NAFTA negotiations could prove damaging to one of this continent’s biggest industries.

Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland says she raised some of those worries Wednesday during a meeting with her U.S. counterpart, as countries make what could be a last stab at a deal in 2018.

She also asked questions about whether the implications of some details in the latest proposals had been properly thought through.

“(These) are the rules that govern this huge, highly integrated automotive industry in North America. Making a mistake could mean burdening companies with far too much red tape — something that’s too cumbersome that makes North America less competitive, compared to the rest of the world,” Freeland said upon leaving the meeting.

“That’s certainly an issue that I’m very, very focused on. I want the rules that we come up with to be rules that do not force our car companies, and our car-parts companies, to be spending too much time on administration and on box-checking, when I would like them to be spending most of their time inventing — and building — really, really great cars and trucks.”

The latest U.S. proposal demands that 75 per cent of every car use North American parts, that 70 per cent of all steel be North American, that 40 per cent of every car be built by workers making $16 per hour and that companies get credit for research and development spending.

One industry-funded study by the Center for Automotive Research says those rules would increase the cost of a car by hundreds or even thousands of dollars, essentially act as a multibillion-dollar tax, and ultimately hurt sales.

The study calculates that somewhere between 25 per cent to 87 per cent of vehicles currently sold in the U.S. would fail to meet the new rules, and would wind up simply paying a tariff.

Mexico in particular has opposed the American proposal, and has countered by recommending more modest changes.

Autos are considered a key issue in the talks.