Yesterday I highlighted a real and glaring gap between the Building Canada Act in Bill C-5 and the established framework in Bill C-39. Every project deserves a fair hearing, so Bill C-39 is welcome on that, but if we can amend it so that the clock actually starts, that would be a good thing.
Essentially, I'm proposing that once the commencement has happened and a 45-day notice has been given, the use of the Building Canada Act can be modified. Instead of relying on the Major Projects Office, which doesn't have a mandate and often may not have the same expertise as the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, the CER or the IAAC, if there's a project that has a real case as a project of national interest, why not refer it at that point to the Building Canada Act minister, Minister LeBlanc? With that, they could identify which parts of it could be safely streamlined, using the exemptions and the incredible powers given to them under the act. This would then allow expertise to make the recommendation and the government to make the final decision and show leadership.
This would create a pipeline for pipelines. It would create a pipeline or a bridge that would allow for more projects to be considered fairly, rather than just those proposed by whichever lobbyist or premier has the minister's ear.
How do you respond to that? Maybe Mr. Chan could respond.