Mayor Matt Brown joins fight for NAFTA in Washington

London mayor Matt Brown is among a group of Canadian mayors in Washington this week to fight for the preservation of the North American Free Trade Agreement.

As talks on the future of NAFTA reach a critical stage in Montreal, Brown and his Canadian counterparts are meeting with American mayors to discuss the importance of maintaining free trade between the two nations.

Brown told CBC's London Morning on Wednesday that trade between the United States and London alone is valued at just under $13 billion a year.

"Many of our industries – advanced manufacturing, agrifood, production – all (are) critically important to our local economy."

Auto industry at risk

The auto industry in London and across Southwestern Ontario would be most directly affected if NAFTA were to die, Brown said.

"Before a product makes it to market, it crosses the border potentially between six and ten times. If we were to effectively make the border thicker, that would increase prices and have some challenges for our market," he said.

Other analysts describe the auto industry in the Southwest  as the epicentre of manufacturing in Canada and predict that the elimination of a free trade deal would result in higher prices for cars, lower salaries and the elimination of thousands of Ontario automotive jobs.

"I think it's really important to recognize that we're not there (yet). This is a reality that we could be facing, and that's why it's so important that these (NAFTA) talks continue," said Brown.

The London mayor is one of seven Canadian mayors attending the U.S. Conference of Mayors. Their trip was organized by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities.  Other Canadian mayors on the trip include Windsor's Drew Dilkens and Ottawa's Jim Watson.

Mayors' track record

Brown said working alongside other Canadian mayors has led to breakthroughs on other issues. A few years ago, big city mayors from across Canada banded together to raise money and awareness across the country of the need to increase the number of Syrian refugees.

He also pointed to the influence of big city mayors in drawing attention to the affordable housing crisis in Canada, which resulted in an 11-year commitment from the federal government.

In addition to free trade, the Canadian and American mayors  meeting in Washington this week will focus on how to build inclusive, tolerant and resilient communities, Brown said.

The London area's experience with terrorism was raised in a conversation with American mayors on Tuesday evening, he said. There were questions about the incident involving suspected ISIS supporter Aaron  Driver, who was gunned down by RCMP as he donated a bomb in a Strathroy cab on Aug. 10, 2016. It's believed Driver was intending to drive to downtown London with an explosive device.

Brown said inclusivity is important, "to make sure we're not isolating any individuals, that we're working together to ensure that we recognize that we're all Londoners … we're all Canadians first, from our perspective."

Brown said he hopes to the trip to Washington will strengthen partnerships between Canadian and American mayors and allow them to communicate on a national level the critical importance of the trade relationship between Canada and the U.S.