Freedom Convoy: Canada trucker protests force car plant shutdowns

Some of the world's biggest carmakers say production is being affected by protesting truckers in Canada.

The anti-vaccine protests in Ottawa and at two Canada-US border crossings have been going on for two weeks.

The rallies, known as the Freedom Convoy, have led to Ford and Toyota plant shutdowns and curtailed trade worth more than $300m (£221m) a day.

Canada's Transport Minister, Omar Alghabra, called it an illegal economic blockade against all Canadians.

Toyota, the world's biggest car manufacturer, has halted production at three factories in Ontario, saying no more vehicles will be produced there this week.

Output has also been halted at a Ford engine factory, while Stellantis, which owns Chrysler, said parts shortages had affected shifts at its Ontario plant.

The shutdowns come as a further blow to the car industry, which was already struggling with a global shortage of semiconductor chips due to the economic effects of the pandemic.

Industry experts say that the protests could result in company layoffs and increase the prices that consumers pay for vehicles.

The demonstrations began late last month in central Ottawa, where about 400 trucks remain.

But since Monday, drivers have also been blocking the largest international suspension bridge in the world at a border crossing that accounts for about a quarter of US-Canada trade.

The closure of the Ambassador Bridge by about 100 protesters in their big rigs has been denounced by trade groups. The span connects Windsor, Ontario, to Detroit, in the US state of Michigan.

Michelle Krebs, a senior analyst with Autotrader in Detroit, told AFP that North American assembly plants relied on timely parts deliveries across the suspension bridge.

She said the car industry was "a significant portion of the economy and an important portion of consumer spending - it's the second-largest purchase people make - and it's been hampered in the past year".

Another key trade link between Coutts, Alberta and Sweet Grass, Montana has also been blocked by protesters for several days.

The truckers are protesting against a rule requiring truckers entering Canada to be fully immunised against coronavirus. The demonstrators have also voiced opposition to Covid passports and mask mandates.

The White House has called for an end to the protests, saying they risk hurting the car industry and US agricultural exports.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has hit out at the protests as "unacceptable".

"Blockages, illegal demonstrations are unacceptable and are negatively impacting businesses and manufacturers," he said on Wednesday.

Mr Trudeau returned to parliament on Monday following a week-long isolation after he caught coronavirus.

He has refused to budge on federal Covid measures, even as some provinces begin lifting their restrictions.

The prime minister has faced criticism from within his own party over his handling of the protests, which come as infections from the Omicron variant decline significantly.

Meanwhile, interim Conservative leader Candice Bergen accused Mr Trudeau on Wednesday of wanting a "permanent pandemic".

The protests in Canada have inspired similar events around the world from Australia and New Zealand to France. Online chatter is building for a trucker protest in Washington DC.