Procedure and House Affairs Committee on Feb. 14th, 2013

[Nathan Cullen, NDP, Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC]

I'm getting confused by that....

[The Chair, Conservative, Joe Preston]

Can this one be raised so we can see the bottom part of Yellowhead?

[Nathan Cullen, NDP, Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC]

Do you have some dips down there, or are you right on the boundary line?

[Rob Merrifield, Conservative, Yellowhead, AB]

Down in this area you have to realize that's mainly mountain area and moose pastures. There are not a lot of people there. Rocky Mountain House is here, and it comes right down to actually the highway close to Rocky Mountain House, back down within just a few kilometres of Rocky Mountain House at the southern tip of the Yellowhead boundary.

[The Chair, Conservative, Joe Preston]

Rob, could you describe where the boundary currently is in the south of Yellowhead?

[Rob Merrifield, Conservative, Yellowhead, AB]

South of Yellowhead it comes down to right beside Rocky Mountain House.

[The Chair, Conservative, Joe Preston]

So just north of Rocky Mountain House east and west is the current....

[Rob Merrifield, Conservative, Yellowhead, AB]

The southern tip would just go straight west of Rocky Mountain House.

[The Chair, Conservative, Joe Preston]

So you're just picking up that piece, Rocky Mountain House and below.

[Rob Merrifield, Conservative, Yellowhead, AB]

You're picking up the community of Rocky Mountain House. That's the main population.

[The Chair, Conservative, Joe Preston]

Right, and a bunch of geographics but not many people.

[Nathan Cullen, NDP, Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC]

I have a final question. I'm not sure if my colleagues have one.

I know a bunch of these communities, but not all of them. I think we have similar ridings in some sense, although different. I'm in northwestern B.C. Your demographics are different but similar.

Are there one or two communities that dominate in terms of straight population or vote? You're pretty spread out.

[Rob Merrifield, Conservative, Yellowhead, AB]

No. Actually, Yellowhead has eight or so communities—

[Nathan Cullen, NDP, Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC]

Mid-sized.

[Rob Merrifield, Conservative, Yellowhead, AB]

—that are around 10,000. That makes up the.... There isn't a dominant community in the riding. Rocky Mountain House going into it wouldn't be dominant and wouldn't be left out. They are about 8,500.

[Nathan Cullen, NDP, Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC]

There seems to be, both on your part and the commission's part, an effort not to include.... You go right to the edge of the Edmonton suburbs. Is that fair? You go right to the Red Deer suburbs—I mean the extensions, and not 30 years ago, but now. It seems you just go around any of those suburban populations. Do you include much in the way of...?

[Rob Merrifield, Conservative, Yellowhead, AB]

No. Right now Yellowhead starts at just out of Stoney Plain and goes all the way to the B.C. border.

[The Chair, Conservative, Joe Preston]

I can see your house from here.

[Nathan Cullen, NDP, Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC]

So it doesn't pick up much in the way of Edmonton commuters—

[Rob Merrifield, Conservative, Yellowhead, AB]

No.

[Nathan Cullen, NDP, Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC]

—and Red Deer commuters.

[Rob Merrifield, Conservative, Yellowhead, AB]

There are some who will live out, but they're acreage people. They don't commute into Edmonton.

[Nathan Cullen, NDP, Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC]

We're talking an hour or an hour and a half commute. Okay.

I'm not sure if my colleagues have any questions. We're good.

Thank you, Chair.

[The Chair, Conservative, Joe Preston]

Sounds good.

Monsieur Dion.

[Stéphane Dion, Liberal, Saint-Laurent—Cartierville, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

To recap, Mr. Merrifield, your changes will affect how many ridings?