Committee to Review Foreign Workers at Battery Plant, Liberal MP Says Concerns Stem From ‘Xenophobia’

The Canadian flag flies near the Peace Tower on Parliament Hill in Ottawa in a file photo. The Canadian Press/Adrian Wyld

At the end of a tense committee meeting during which a Liberal MP said concerns about foreign workers sound xenophobic, MPs voted to study the contract for the electric vehicle battery plant in Windsor, Ont.

Opposition MPs are seeking clarification around the NextStar Energy battery plant subsidized by $15 billion in taxpayer funds after it surfaced that it would employ 1,600 South Korean workers. The plant is a joint venture between European carmaker Stellantis and South Korean company LG Energy Solutions.