This was the job that Minister Boissonnault was appointed to do. I will give credence and credit that he is new at it, but I don't think it's unreasonable, given the time crunch and necessity, for him to come and offer some sort of an update.
We know that governments are often slow to respond in general, and in particular to natural disasters. I've seen this repeated over numerous circumstances over the years in my own home municipality and in many municipalities that I represent. I think we probably all have, in some way, shape or form, seen delays on a DFA claim from the province going to the feds and been waiting for the DFAA claim to come through, with debates on whether or not the receipts for the projects and the work undertaken were eligible or not eligible and disputes between various levels of government.
The reality is that at the end of the day, there is only one taxpayer. Whether they're paying provincially or municipally or to this big behemoth of a federal government, there is only one taxpayer, and I think we owe it to them to be as nimble, responsive and responsible as possible with those dollars.
That's why I think it's entirely reasonable to not wait a month to have Minister Boissonnault here as soon as possible, with the allowance that if he is in Jasper, I will accept that he can't be here that day. We can't just keep pushing back his appearance because we're worried about political optics, because the individuals in Parks Canada once debated on whether or not they should do prescribed burns. I do believe, in a fully non-partisan sense, that every member of this committee and, I think, of the government, does want to see this recovery move forward in as expedited a manner as possible.
I can only imagine that if your business had burned and remained closed, if you remained displaced with your family and if you were watching delays in Ottawa, you would be frustrated. I don't think it's reasonable to blame any of those individuals impacted for being frustrated. I think it's reasonable to say that the people of Jasper are counting on us, as opposition, to hold the government accountable and to demand answers, but, more importantly, to collectively make sure that the community is not forgotten, is not left behind.
I'd like to call on all members of this committee, regardless of party, to vote in favour of this amendment to make sure that we don't just push back all of the other work we've been doing in this committee to try to make this issue go away. I think it is very reasonable that the minister appear in mid-November once we are back from our Remembrance Day ceremonies that we are all going to travel to across the country, rightly and, hopefully, properly honouring all of those who have served in our armed forces.
I'd like to think that we could do it before the date that has been proposed. We still, as far as I can tell, Mr. Chair, have not seen a confirmed statement of attendance, and I always get worried when they say they are going to attend but, as we get closer, something comes up. I think that's a tactic that is regularly undertaken by those who want to avoid any accountability, and in my view it is time for the minister to appear.