Industry and Technology

Opening remarks

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Clean Energy Canada is a think tank based out of Simon Fraser University, focused on accelerating Canada's energy transition. To set the stage, last year, more than a quarter of new cars sold globally were electric. This shift is being driven by the markets you'd expect—the European Union and China—but also by Vietnam's strong incentives and manufacturing focus and by Ethiopia, which once spent $4.5 billion a year importing fuel and is now the first country globally to ban imported industrial combustion engines. Whatever the rationale, the shift to EVs is accelerating, and by 2035, they're on track to reach 50% of global new car sales. Bloomberg notes that electrified transport is now the largest sector of the energy transition, with close to $1 trillion U.S. spent on EV purchases and charging infrastructure in 2025. It's a far leap to say that if Canada's auto sector is going to thrive into the future, we have to be capable of building or integrating into the supply chains for high-quality, affordable EVs, but an EV future is a bright future for Canada. We have major opportunities for producing the critical minerals, battery materials and other…

Opening remarks

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Daniel Breton. I am the CEO of Electric Mobility Canada, Canada's association dedicated to the transportation electrification industry. We represent some 200 organizations, many of them multinational, including manufacturers of cars, trucks, buses, school buses, boats, electricity providers, unions, mining companies, research centres, universities, cities, fleet managers, dealerships and charging networks. According to an EY report published in 2025, there are now more than 130,000 people working in the Canadian EV industry, from mining to assembly, charging infrastructure to electricity production, and research and development to sales and education. By 2035 EY expects the number to increase, in a medium scenario, to approximately 600,000 jobs—well-paid, sustainable jobs—everywhere in Canada. We support the federal government's new auto strategy, as it brings market predictability for industry and consumers alike. From support for EV manufacturing to charging infrastructure to EV affordability to GHG emissions regulation, this is a serious plan that brings to businesses a much-needed pathway towards…

Opening remarks

Thank you so much, Mr. Chair and members of the committee. Thank you for the opportunity to appear today. When we talk about electric vehicles and cybersecurity, we need to start with a simple truth: The issue here isn't the power plant; it's the connectivity. Whether a vehicle runs on gasoline, diesel or electricity, modern cars are increasingly computers on wheels connected to the Internet. If a vulnerability in a smart phone crashes an app, it's inconvenient. If a vulnerability connected to a car is exploited, it can be deadly. We have already seen what happens when those computers on wheels are insecure. In 2015 security researchers remotely hacked a Jeep Cherokee while a journalist from Wired was driving it on a Missouri highway. They cut the transmission, leaving the vehicle unable to accelerate while travelling at highway speed. In further testing, they demonstrated the ability to control the steering and disable the brakes. That vulnerability forced the recall of 1.4 million vehicles. Little has improved since then. Recently, a cyber-attack hit a Russian company that provides Internet-connected vehicle alarm systems used across multiple car brands. The attack knocked…

Opening remarks

Good afternoon, Mr. Chair and members of the committee. Thank you for having me. My name is Travis Allan. I'm the president and chief executive officer of the Canadian Charging Infrastructure Council. We represent Canada's EV charging industry. I'd like to start with my top message. We see Canada's new automotive strategy—which has a thoughtful blend of incentives, greenhouse gas regulation and capped allowances of new globally leading EVs allowed into Canada—as a national job strategy. The charging sector is ready to deliver on its part. To realize the value of this strategy and to deliver on our national EV targets, I would suggest that the committee focus on two key areas. First is the need to implement clear, credible greenhouse gas emissions standards for vehicles. Second is calling for the recapitalization of the highly successful zero-emissions vehicle infrastructure program, ZEVIP, which is run by NRCan, beyond 2027. While many have identified the important local job benefits to southern Ontario from our automotive policy, I want to note that this is actually a Canadian issue. We see this as a broader Canadian job generator because when we look at our members and…

Opening remarks

Mr. Chair, members of the committee, thank you for inviting me to speak today. EVCO is a volunteer-led, non-profit organization that was founded almost 50 years ago. EVCO is not affiliated with the industry, so we're truly an independent voice that brings a pragmatic view based on science and economics. I'm here to represent the voice of ordinary Canadians and EV owners across the country. The electrification of transportation and, indeed, much of the rest of the economy is inevitable for economic reasons. It's simply cheaper to run on electricity. It's an economic argument. Either Canada leads on electrification or we are led. Being led means that the Canadian auto industry will continue to shrink and become irrelevant, with many lost jobs. We are already seeing an auto industry wherein vehicle assembly has declined from $2 million in 1997 to $1.3 million in 2024. The U.S. administration—as mentioned before—is worsening the problem by actively trying to shift jobs to the U.S. Leading, however, would mean expanding an auto industry and providing good jobs for hard-working Canadians. It also means other opportunities in adjacent industries, as illustrated by electric aircraft…