Opposition MPs from across the province got together in the frigid cold Thursday morning to call for Ottawa to revitalize shipbuilding in Canada.
The politicians were joined by shipbuilders who rallied for infrastructure funding on the Halifax shipyard in weather that reached -24 C with wind chill.
“There was an attitude once in this country that shipbuilding was a sunset industry. We believe we’ve turned that attitude around,” said NDP MP Peter Stoffer.
Stoffer was joined by Liberal MP Geoff Regan, independent MP Bill Casey and fellow NDP MP Megan Leslie.
With infrastructure spending being one of the main priorities to fight a recession, many industries have started lobbying to be recipients.
The opposition MPs argued funding shipbuilding would boost the economy by bringing money that had been flowing elsewhere back into Canada.
“We have over $22 billion dollars worth of work being done in this country replacing, upgrading and fixing military, coast guard, laker fleet and our ferry fleets,” said Stoffer.
“We believe we have the companies, we have the expertise, we have the workers.”
Union members said the shipyard currently has 300 people working and at least that many out of work. They said new projects could bring hundreds of people back to Nova Scotia.
“If your tax dollars are going back into your community, why would you want to send them overseas?” said James Vaslet of the Marine Workers Federation.
“For every dollar you spend you’re getting 75 cents of it back in your own economy. Why would you build them anywhere
