Government Operations committee  Thank you, Madam Chair. The key message is that in spite of the fact that this is a short-term economic stimulus plan, efforts to rehabilitate infrastructure have to continue on a 15 year horizon. Unfortunately, I can't give you the information you want. I told Ms. Bourgeois tha

Government Operations committee  I will repeat what I said earlier, Ms. Bourgeois. It is hard to say, because we haven't done that exercise with our members. You understand that there will be an election on November 1 in Quebec.

Government Operations committee  So our mayors' current priority is not necessarily answering questions from the Union des municipalités. But I promise we will have results right after that.

Government Operations committee  I agree with my colleague, the federal excise tax on gasoline has been welcomed in Quebec. It allows us to plan for more than a year or two, something that is very rare in municipal government. Because of the money that is now available, we can do that.

Government Operations committee  Unfortunately, I can't answer your question, I'm not familiar with it.

Government Operations committee  We don't have a number. You have to understand that when the federal government and Quebec each invest 33% in projects, the sales tax means that they recover $17 or $18 million, but we recover absolutely nothing. We thing that is unfair. We have already spoken to our colleagues

Government Operations committee  Thank you, Mr. Martin. First, you know as well as I do that the municipalities have to abide by various provincial statutes and regulations: the Civil Code, the Municipal Code, the Elections Act, and so on. In itself, the federal excise tax on gasoline is a very good tax. It ha

Government Operations committee  Ms. Bourgeois, if you will allow me, I would like to add something. I agree with my colleague Mr. Généreux, but still, an investment of $5 million in Toronto or Calgary is one thing. An investment of $5 million in Saint-Prime or Chelsea or St. Mary's, Newfoundland, is another thi

Government Operations committee  We have not done a study like the one by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities. We therefore cannot state an opinion on the question. The process is fairly lengthy, however. Given that a number of projects will have to be approved before and over the summer, they will not sta

Government Operations committee  Thank you, Madam Chair. Members of the committee, the Union of Quebec Municipalities was eager to accept the invitation to take part in your deliberations regarding the implementation of economic stimulus measures, because this is a question of crucial importance to its members.