QUEEN'S PARK — It received the support of the NDP, but Thunder Bay-Superior North MPP Michael Gravelle's Private Member's Bill on mass transit was defeated Thursday afternoon in the Ontario legislature.
The governing Progressive Conservatives voted against the bill on second reading, meaning it failed to advance to consideration by a committee of the legislature.
Gravelle wants Ontario to require at least 60 per cent Canadian content for any purchase of mass transit vehicles.
The bill was aimed at shoring up Bombardier Transportation, which is laying off 550 workers at its Thunder Bay plant next month because of a lack of orders.
"The vote was 54 to 32. I'm very disappointed," Gravelle said in an interview.
The Liberal party only has seven seats in the legislature.
Gravelle said he was pleased that the Official Opposition – the NDP – voted in favour of his bill.
During debate on the legislation, he cited Aziz Guergachi, a professor in Ryerson University's School of Management, who argued in a column last April that Ontario should use the flexibility it has under international trade rules to protect its interests.
Guergachi noted that the United States will increase the domestic content requirement for public transit projects receiving federal funding to 70 per cent starting next year.
"Ontario's recent announcements of the $28.5-billion transit expansion plan for the GTA are welcome and direly needed...However, nowhere are we talking about leveraging these forthcoming investments to ensure maximum benefits for the province, its local manufacturing, innovation and jobs," he wrote.
Gravelle said his bill was meant to establish a level playing field for Ontario suppliers.
"I'm just going to find whatever way I can to support Bombardier and get more contracts to them, but it will be challenging without Canadian content rules in place," he said following the vote.
According to Gravelle, the government took the position that it was not going to respond to protectionist threats because it doesn't believe in protectionism.
"But my point was that, indeed, that time has come for us to put the same thing in place in Ontario, particularly with the massive $30 billion transit expansion plan the province has," Gravelle said.
Tbnewswatch requested comment from the office of Premier Doug Ford and from Vic Vedeli, the minister of Economic Development, but neither provided an immediate response.
Earlier in the day, Thunder Bay-Atikokan MPP Judith Monteith-Farrell, told the legislature the government has yet to offer "a real solution" to the pending layoffs at the Bombardier plant.
The NDP member said hundreds of families in her riding are facing uncertainty and hard times.
"Jurisdictions across the globe have found ways to keep production local, but so far there has been no real action by this government to save the plant," she said.
Premier Ford and Fedeli both responded to Monteith-Farrell, pointing to the announcement in September that Ontario has approved funding for Metrolinx to buy 36 more bi-level train cars from Bombardier.
"This government saved over 200 jobs...We're going to continue to thrive in Thunder Bay," the premier said.
