Bill C-281 (Historical)

An Act to amend the Canada Transportation Act (discontinuance of listed sidings)

This enactment amends the Canada Transportation Act to provide a new procedure to be followed by railway companies seeking to discontinue the operation of a listed siding that is used by producers of grain to load and transport grain by railway cars.

[Stéphane Bergeron, Bloc, Montarville, QC]

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.

I'd like to thank the witnesses for their extremely helpful and interesting clarifications with respect to Bill C‑281

Mr. Neve, you and I had the opportunity, in a previous life, to work on a number of matters together, including the one involving Mr. William Sampson. In that particular case, it was desirable to do everything on the quiet, meaning not to say anything publicly so that negotiations could continue.

I had a concern, and I told the sponsor of Bill C‑281, and representatives of Global Affairs Canada, about it last week. Thank you for the excellent suggestions you have made with respect to amendments, which appear to me to address some of my concerns, particularly the first few items in the bill.

I'd like to return to a statement you made in The Globe and Mail on January 14, concerning the impact of the Magnitsky Law. You wrote that the Canadian government “continues to be reticent about imposing sanctions against culpable Chinese government officials through what is commonly known as the Magnitsky Act".

However, I would like to point out that the government imposed sanctions on for Chinese individuals and a Chinese entity under the Special Economic Measures Act.

What do you think can be achieved by imposing sanctions under the Magnitsky Law that could not be achieved by imposing sanctions under the Special Economic Measures Act?

Canada Transportation Act

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Wascana, SK]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-281, An Act to amend the Canada Transportation Act (discontinuance of listed sidings).

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to introduce another measure to better preserve producer car loading sites across western Canada. Located along railway sidings, these sites enable prairie grain producers to load their own railcars as an alternative to being forced to go through the grain-handling facilities of private elevator companies.

Down from over 700 such do-it-yourself loading sites some 10 years ago, fewer than 300 of these sites remain in existence today. The grain companies do not want farmers loading their own grain cars because, of course, they do not collect any tariffs on that grain and the railways have been trying to get rid of these sites. However, producers have actually been making greater use of their right to load their own railcars in recent years. The number of producer-loaded cars is up fourfold in the last decade, to nearly 12,000 cars per year.

The vast majority of prairie grain is handled through the conventional system but this is a right that was given to farmers to load their own cars over 100 years ago by the Supreme Court of Canada. It is enshrined in the Canada Grain Act but it is meaningless unless the sites exist for farmers to use. Right now, the railway can abandon those sites on 60 days' notice without any further due process.

This measure proposes to give three years' notice to ensure there will be a proper hearing, to put the onus on the railways to prove what they are doing is in the public interest, to provide other interested parties with an opportunity to buy and operate those sidings and to compensate municipalities when a siding is closed.

This is just decent behaviour in dealing with matters of this kind. I hope the measures contained in this private member's bill will commend themselves to all members of the House.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)