Amarjeet Sohi

[Ministerial Expenses, June 1st, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, prior to this government taking charge, we did not have a solely dedicated ministry for infrastructure. We did not have a solely dedicated deputy minister for infrastructure. We did not have any staff to support the minister and the deputy minister. The expenditures that the hon. member is talking about are to provide support staff, office space, minister's office space, and the DM's office space. We have followed the guidelines from the Treasury Board, and we are here to create efficiencies—

[Ministerial Expenses, May 31st, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, before November 4, 2015, infrastructure did not have a dedicated minister and we did not have a dedicated ministry to deliver on the commitments. We did not have a dedicated DM. Therefore, in order to accommodate the new office, we have to have space. We need space for our staff, we need space for the DM's staff, and that is what we have done. It is a new office, new staff, and that is where the expenditures have occurred.

[Ministerial Expenses, May 31st, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, our commitments require a dedicated minister, a dedicated ministry, and a dedicated DM in order to deliver on the expectations of Canadians. We needed new spaces for our staff and new spaces for our DM and his staff, and that is what the investment is for.

[Ministerial Expenses, May 31st, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, our government has committed to doubling the infrastructure investments over the next 10 years. That requires—

[Infrastructure, May 30th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague, the hon. member for Northwest Territories for his tireless efforts on behalf of northern communities.

Our government has made unprecedented commitments to support public infrastructure. The Inuvik to Tuktoyaktuk highway will help to connect people, create jobs, and support economic development in the north.

We are very encouraged by the progress of this project, and I look forward to touring this exciting project with my colleague in the future.

[Infrastructure, May 16th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, when we look at the funding that was allocated to the province of Quebec in 2014, up until last October, zero dollars were delivered. So we understand the need that the province is facing. We are building that relationship in order to deliver on the commitment, in order to ensure that $1.7 billion that belongs to the province of Quebec is delivered on time. That is why we are working so hard to sign the agreement with the province on many projects and we will continue to work with it in order to deliver on this.

[Infrastructure, May 16th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to say that we are building a very strong relationship with the Province of Quebec. I met with three of the ministers last week when I was in Montreal to talk about the infrastructure needs of the community not only within Montreal, but also within the entire province of Quebec. We will be moving forward in delivering the commitment and also approving some of the priorities that are currently under review.

[Disaster Assistance, May 10th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, I was back home in Alberta along with my colleague from Edmonton Centre and the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness to see first hand and meet with families that had been impacted by these wildfires. We saw the generosity and the compassion of Canadians toward them in helping them and standing shoulder to shoulder with them in this time of need.

We are with Alberta today, we will be with Alberta tomorrow and well into the future as we rebuild Fort McMurray.

[Infrastructure, May 9th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, the amount the hon. member is referring to is within PPP Canada, and that is where it should be and that is where it is now. The buckets the member makes reference to were actually created by the previous government in multiple areas that we are actually trying to put together, so we can deliver results to Canadians in the way that Canadians expect us to do, to deliver the kind of infrastructure they need for public transit, for social housing, for green infrastructure, to build strong, sustainable communities.

[Infrastructure, May 9th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, we have no intention of changing the mandate of PPP Canada or selling off the assets of PPP Canada. We respect the local economy. We respect the decision of the local councils on how they procure their infrastructure and how they build the infrastructure, which they do on behalf of their communities, and we will continue to respect that. The hon. member understands that. As a former mayor, that is what she requested in the past, and that is what we have delivered on behalf of mayors across the country.