Trudeau vows to protect agriculture
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau vowed to protect Canada’s agriculture and wine industries during NAFTA renegotiations following a tour of Niagara College’s winery Saturday morning.
Representatives of the region’s wine industry have expressed concerns after the U.S. identified greater access to the Canadian wine market among its priorities in the North American Free Trade Agreement renegotiations. Those renegotiations began last week in Washington, D.C.
After touring the college’s teaching winery in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Trudeau said “we will continue to stand up for Canadian agriculture, Canadian produce, Canadian wines” during the continuing renegotiations.
“We know there are tremendous opportunities for our wine industry to thrive in the North American market and indeed around the world and we will always stay focused on exactly that,” he said, responding to questions from reporters.
Trudeau said Canada’s wine industry has “grown by leaps and bounds” to become “worldrenowned in terms of quality, in terms of product, and having institutions like Niagara College developing capacity for individual Canadians, for young Canadians to develop the expertise that is going to be more and more necessary in the world of wine, is a very exciting thing.”
Trudeau also pledged to ensure that more young Canadians have an opportunity to attend facilities such as Niagara College’s teaching winery.
“Students today have many more degrees, diplomas and certificates to choose from than we did when we were students. Our post-secondary institutions were able to adapt to the realities of the new economy and adjust their curriculums to meet the demands of a world that is rapidly changing. We can’t forget that not everyone is benefiting from those incredible programs. Not everyone has the opportunity to get the training they want in the field they like,” he said. “Our government intends to change that.”
He said the federal Liberal government is making “smart, targeted investments in skills training so that more Canadian scan attend institutions like Niagara College, and acquire the skills they need to succeed.”
Those investments make it easier for people who are currently employed to access government grants and loans “so they can continue to provide for their families while upgrading their skills.”
He said there have also been changes to the employment insurance program, “allowing parents to return to school without the risk of losing the EI benefits they need to put food on the table.”
“We know that by investing in skills and training, we’re investing in Canadians and in their potential. We’re helping students, parents and even grandparents find and retain good well-paying jobs in the field of their liking — jobs that will put more money in their pockets so they can save, invest and grow the economy.”
After joining St. Catharines MP Chris Bittle while visiting the college campus, Trudeau joined Niagara Centre MP Vance Badawey to knock on the doors of residents in Thorold. He also made a stop at the Battle of Beaverdams Park.
College president Dan Patterson said the prime minister’s visit provided an opportunity to talk to Trudeau about the resilience of Niagara’s wine industry, and across the country.
He said vintners have built a strong robust industry that’s creating jobs, and education is so prominent in that equation.
Trudeau, he added, “wanted to see it and wanted to endorse the power of industry/education partnerships.”
Despite its stake in the local wine
industry, Patterson said the college is leaving NAFTA concerns to the industry itself to express.
Nevertheless, he said the college is very much in support of the efforts of organizations such as Grape Growers of Ontario.
“We have great industry associations that speak to and help position the government, and provide great input to the government on those discussions,” he said.
Trudeau also discussed immigration, as an influx of asylum seekers are illegally crossing the U.S. border into Canada.
Local immigration agencies have recently begun to lend their assistance to their counterparts in other parts of the province, finding accommodations for several of the families who have made their way here after arriving in Quebec.
Responding to a question about an expected next wave of asylum seekers coming from El Salvador, Trudeau said Canada is open to immigration “and Canadians are open and compassionate towards the world” because they have confidence in the laws and processes that control the country’s immigration system.
Niagara immigration agencies, too, have begun to see asylum seekers from Haiti.
“We are open to people fleeing persecution, terror, and we have a refugee process that goes through the steps, whether someone is crossing the border or coming from war-torn Africa, a worn torn region of Africa,” Trudeau said.
“We will continue to ensure that the rules and laws in place are always followed, while we continue to be the open welcoming country that knows that diversity is a source of strength. That is what has brought us to this point and that is what will continue to bring us forward as the country we know and love.”