Even as a noisy protest by truckers continued to halt traffic in Ottawa, federal officials are targeting supply-chain bottlenecks being felt in factories and stores across Canada.
Transport Minister Omar Alghabra said Monday the government will establish a task force with industry experts to identify roadblocks and find ways to speed the movement of goods. It also will direct $50 million from the National Trade Corridors Fund toward easing port congestion.
Alghabra's comments came after a conference with leaders from manufacturers and trade groups including General Motors of Canada and Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters (CME).
The minister told reporters there were no new bottlenecks despite new vaccine requirements for truckers. He said data from border crossings show "no sign" of a drop in commercial traffic after Canada ended an exemption on Jan. 15 allowing unvaccinated drivers to enter without quarantine and molecular tests.
In a protest that quickly expanded to target all pandemic restrictions, convoys of trucks and light vehicles from across Canada descended on downtown Ottawa on the weekend, blockading Parliament Hill. How many participants are cross-border truckers is unclear.
Alghabra stressed that the government won't back down on the mandate and continues to view vaccinations as the surest route to normalcy. Nearly 90 per cent of Canadian truckers have had at least one COVID-19 shot.
The CME, however, said businesses and consumers are suffering and called on Canada to reinstate the exemption.
“We can’t get the goods we need because of the supply chain bottlenecks made worse by the trucker vaccine mandate," Dennis Darby, the group's president and CEO, said in a statement after Monday's meeting. "Our manufacturers can’t operate, and Canadians are seeing empty shelves."
Flavio Volpe, president of the Automotive Parts Manufacturers Association, said it's too early to tell whether the vaccine mandate and ongoing protests have any permanent impact.
"In the short-term, however, we've seen prices for logistics increase," said Volpe, who was not at the conference.
Supply problems have been a key issue for Canada's auto sector, from the big auto plants to parts makers to dealers. Toronto-based supplier Martinrea International is part of an $11.5-million project to create a digital "supply chain resiliency platform” aimed at averting production delays.
But global issues, including container shortages, could limit progress.
"This is happening around the world," said Export Minister Mary Ng, one of six cabinet ministers at the conference. "Our supply chains reach beyond our borders."
