Jacqueline Thorpe, Financial Post, With files from news services Published: Monday, December 15, 2008

Tony Clement, the federal Industry Minister, said Sunday that Canada's forestry and "extraction industries" such as mining could get assistance in the federal budget as Canada and the United States try to hammer out a rescue package for North American automakers.

"Other industrial sectors, other extraction sectors, are on the table for our budget coming out on Jan. 27," Mr. Clement, said on CTV's Question Period. A number of industries are under stress, such as forestry, the mining sector, the extraction sectors and retail, Mr. Clement said.

"This is why Jim Flaherty, the Finance Minister, is consulting very widely, why the Prime Minister called the first ministers meeting," Mr. Clement said. "We're talking about the whole kit and caboodle here."

Mr. Clement said he expected the United States to announce a deal for the automakers within days.

"I expect over the next few days the U. S. administration to cross the t's and dot some i's." he said.

On Friday, Canada said it would put up as much as $2.8-billion to help the auto sector weather a collapse in U.S. sales. Ontario and the federal government will provide aid proportional to Canada's share of the North American auto industry, which is about 20%.

The White House said the administration was considering tapping a fund meant for financial bailouts to provide assistance to the automakers after a US$14-billion Congressional loan package fell apart in the U. S. Senate last week.

Auto company executives and analysts have said that General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC need immediate help to avoid bankruptcy. Ford Motor Co. is in slightly better financial shape but says it needs a major line of credit.

U.S. President George W. Bush was in Baghdad on Sunday and White House spokeswoman Dana Perino told reporters she did not expect a deal until he returned.

"I just don't expect anything for a while," Ms. Perino said.

Mr. Clement said Canada's options would be "limited" if the United States did not come up with a deal.

"Canadians are buying cars. Perhaps a little bit less so last month than the month before, but we're still buying cars," Mr. Clement said on CTV.

"The reason why we're having this conversation in the first place is that Americans simply aren't buying cars and unless there's a rescue or fix in the United States, it's very difficult for us ... to do something independently of that."

He added Canada and the United States are planning a "structured" rescue. "[There] is going to be a heck of a lot of oversight," Mr. Clement said.

"There's going to be a review of the price structure, which is going to include the cost of production, which includes labour as well as making sure each of these rescued car companies has a plan for the future."