TORONTO — Ontario’s new trade minister is getting an early taste of tariff talk as he tries to help the province avoid a devastating blow to the province’s economy.

Jim Wilson, who also holds the economic development and job creation files, will be in Washington on Thursday to speak at a hearing on possible tariffs on auto imports.

“As the Government of Ontario’s representative at this hearing, I look forward to speaking in defence of Ontario’s auto industry and the economic benefits it delivers in both the U.S. and Canada,” read the statement from Wilson.

Analysts and industry groups have warned that tariffs in the auto sector could plunge Ontario into a recession.

Speaking to reporters after question period, Wilson said his plan is to convince Americans “that they’ve got more to lose than we do but both sides benefit with a healthy open border.”

He said the tariffs would nearly halve Ontario’s auto production from two million cars to 1.1 million and lead to the loss of 600,000 jobs. Still Wilson said the impact would be worse for the 28 states south of the border who heavily rely on trade with Ontario.

[READ MORE: Experts warn Trump’s auto tariffs would devastate supply chains, cause mass layoffs]

Wilson said he believed bringing facts and stats to the table would make a difference because decision makers “might not be aware of how important and how dependent their jobs are on an open relationship.”

The same justification that the U.S. used to slap tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum is also being considered by the White House for Canadian vehicles and auto parts.

Under Section 232 of the United States’ Trade Expansion Act, the U.S. is allowed to impose tariffs on products that are deemed a national security risk.

Amid a growing trade dispute between the two allies, President Donald Trump called for the investigation into Canadian auto manufacturing in May.

Premier Doug Ford’s chief of staff Dean French will tag along for the trip, Wilson said French’s presence will be used to reinforce the importance of the trip.

The trip was announced on the same day that as reports that Ontario’s representative in the U.S. had been let go by the new government. Monique Smith was a former Liberal minister and had been in the role since 2013.

“Monique, who I know very well, would not be surprised that the new government, as all governments do, will put their own representative in place and put our stamp on the trade file. Right now I’m the representative, and happy to do that,” Wilson said.

The premier’s office would not confirm if Smith would be replaced or if the position would be axed.

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