Carney calls Stellantis plant sale a betrayal, vows to fight for workers

BRAMPTON · Prime Minister Mark Carney says automaker Stellantis has betrayed Canada by selling its idled assembly plant in Brampton, Ont. Carney made the comments in Montreal on Tuesday, one day after Stellantis announced it had signed an agreement to sell the facility to Canadian armoured vehicle maker Roshel Inc. The prime minister said the situation violates the company's obligations and is a betrayal of workers and all Canadians. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre blamed the Liberal government for the closure and called on Carney to fire Industry Minister Mélanie Joly. "The situation in the Brampton plant is unacceptable," Carney said. "It violates the obligations that Stellantis has under several agreements, but to be more fundamental, it's a betrayal of the workers as it is a betrayal of the obligations to Canada and by extension to all Canadians." Standing next to Joly, Carney said his industry minister is doing an exceptional job and will continue to fight for the workers. Poilievre held a news conference outside the idled plant earlier on Tuesday. "The Liberal strategy has failed to save jobs from Stellantis to Stelco," Poilievre said. "Today the Official Opposition is calling for the Liberal prime minister to fire his failed, costly, job-killing Liberal industry minister."

Stellantis and Roshel announced the asset purchase agreement on Monday. The price was not disclosed. The transaction is expected to close by the end of this year, subject to government, regulatory and other conditions. Roshel plans to convert the plant into a centre of excellence for advanced manufacturing. Roshel CEO Roman Shimonov said the plan will strengthen Canada's sovereign industrial capabilities and drive local economic growth. The defence company expects to create opportunities for about 700 to 1,000 laid-off Stellantis employees as the facility returns to operations. Roshel also plans to lease around one-quarter of the site back to Stellantis for automotive work.

More than 2,000 workers were laid off from the Brampton plant when it halted operations in 2023 to refit for Jeep production. Stellantis paused the retooling plan in early 2025 and later announced the Jeep Compass would be built in Illinois instead. In a statement on Tuesday, Stellantis said it recognizes that Canadians expect accountability for public funding and has offered to voluntarily return government support received for Brampton's original retooling plan. The company cited confidentiality provisions preventing further details. CBC News confirmed last December that the federal government gave $222 million to the Canadian arm of Stellantis between 2023 and 2025.

READ MORE: Prime Minister Carney calls six federal byelections for December

READ MORE: Carney says review of Indian Act has no fixed conclusion

Unifor national president Lana Payne called the sale a worst-case scenario. "Having sold an auto plant is a worst-case scenario, and that's what we're facing right now," Payne said at a press conference Monday evening. "Stellantis has betrayed our members with an underhanded deal to sell the plant and walk away from its commitments to these workers." The union representing more than 9,000 Stellantis workers in Canada has a 97.3 per cent strike mandate, though Payne said workers are not yet in a legal strike position and a strike remains a last resort. Contract talks between Stellantis and Unifor remain at an impasse.

Joly said her office has been engaging with Stellantis and Unifor for more than a year to try to find a solution. "Stellantis has decided to go ahead and violate its contract and so that is why we will … use the full force of the law to make sure that we protect jobs but also bring back justice to these workers," she said. The industry minister said the sale does not erase the commitments Stellantis made to workers in Brampton. Joly has called a meeting of all stakeholders, including the company, union, Ontario government and Brampton representatives, in Toronto on Thursday. "I expect them to come to the table with a single focus: protecting good paying jobs in Brampton," Joly said.

Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown said he welcomes a local company bringing manufacturing back to the site. In a statement, Brown also said Unifor members deserve a fair resolution from Stellantis and called on the automaker to work with the union. "I'm calling on Stellantis to work with Unifor to reach that resolution, and on Roshel to work directly with Local 1285 to identify hiring and training opportunities for laid-off Brampton autoworkers," he said. Brown said Stellantis needs to repay taxpayers for public funding it received. "I will continue pressing the federal government to recover that money and hold Stellantis accountable for the commitments it made to our workers and our city," Brown said.

The prime minister said his government intends to fully enforce its rights in protection of the workers and Canadian funds. Carney said he reminded Stellantis of its commitments under funding deals last year and warned of consequences if it failed to meet them. In a 2022 deal announced by the previous Liberal government, Ottawa said it would inject up to $529 million in Stellantis plants in Brampton and Windsor, Ont., to help retool them. The contract barred Stellantis from closing its Brampton assembly plant before 2035 unless certain circumstances made it commercially unviable. Ontario Premier Doug Ford's government pledged up to $513 million in that deal. CBC News confirmed on Tuesday that Ontario has not provided any funding for the Brampton retooling because it did not meet conditions related to job creation and milestones.

With files from The Canadian Press, Global News and CBC News