Information & Ethics Committee on June 11th, 2026

[The Chair, Conservative, John Brassard]

Mr. Cooper, that's effectively the end of the time.

Mr. Chang, you have five minutes. Go ahead.

[Wade Chang, Liberal, Burnaby Central, BC]

Thank you, Chair.

Minister, can you confirm that the discussions regarding high-speed rail began long before your election to Parliament and long before you became Minister of Finance, yes or no?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC]

Yes, I quoted an article to Mr. Bonin, because I know he too reads Radio-Canada articles. The article says that the Chambre de commerce de Trois-Rivières is calling on elected officials and organizations in the Mauricie region to work together to get high-speed rail service on the north shore. This article was published at 4:31 p.m. on February 15, 2010.

If you live where I live, you've been hearing about that project for at least two decades. As an MP, I have the right to discharge, and I have the obligation to discharge, my duty to my constituents. I came to know that project before I was even elected. It was five years before I was elected, and obviously way before I became Minister of Finance.

As I said, if you've been living in that part of the country, you've been hearing about that project. Not only have you been hearing about it; as you heard me quoting, the Chamber of Commerce and civil society have been asking for a project like that. When I took my role as Minister of Finance, I had to put the proper safeguards in place, which I did.

As I said, I have knowledge of the project just because of public knowledge. It's very well known in my part of the country.

[Wade Chang, Liberal, Burnaby Central, BC]

Thank you, Minister.

Can you also confirm that the entity now known as Alto was created in 2022, several years before the events being discussed today, and at a time when you were serving as the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC]

You know as well as I do that when you appear before the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics, you have to be very factual, so I'll read the published mandate, which is available online.

In March 2022, the Government of Canada issued Orders in Council authorizing and directing VIA Rail Canada Inc. (VIA Rail) to incorporate a wholly owned subsidiary, Alto. It has a mandate to develop and implement the HSR initiative including the design, construction […]

Obviously, there's more. What you're saying is what's written there. It also says: “The High-Speed Rail (HSR) Initiative is one of the largest infrastructure projects in Canada's history. This rail network will span approximately 1,000 km […]”

What I'm reading here is public. I'm being very careful with my comments to our colleagues, but it's available online. It's public information.

[Wade Chang, Liberal, Burnaby Central, BC]

Thank you, Minister.

For the benefit of this committee, could you clarify the reporting relationship between Alto and the Government of Canada and which minister is responsible for the oversight of the Crown corporation?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC]

I'll say this in English, because I think it's good to have it in both official languages.

Just for the record, I will read in extenso an email dated April 7, 2026, at 4:37 p.m., as follows:

Considering that Alto is a Crown corporation accountable to Parliament through the minister of transport and as minister of finance you have no decision-making authority over matters of human resources at Alto, you do not have an opportunity to further the interest of any specific Alto employee.... There is no risk of conflict of interest and a screen is not required.

I just want to be very clear about the facts. When you're at the ethics committee, and you have a number of lawyers in the room, you have to stick with the facts and make sure that whatever you state in this committee is factually correct and is substantiated by evidence. That's why I brought the documents: to substantiate what I'm saying with evidence so that people can form their own opinion.

[Wade Chang, Liberal, Burnaby Central, BC]

Thank you, Minister.

Could you explain what Alto would mean for Canada's long-term economic growth, productivity and connectivity? What would Canada lose by not moving forward with such a project?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC]

Mr. Chang, you'll understand that, given the circumstances, I'll limit myself to what's public. I'll read what it says on the Transport Canada's website about the high-speed rail initiative, so public information: “The High-Speed Rail (HSR) Initiative is one of the largest infrastructure projects in Canada's history. This rail network will span approximately 1,000 km and reach speeds of up to 300 km/hour, with stops in Toronto, Peterborough, Ottawa, Montréal, Laval, Trois-Rivières, and Quebec City.”

If committee members are looking for public information, it's on the Transport Canada website. It can help people to form an opinion on this major project. As I said, back home, we've been talking about this project for, oh, my goodness, at least two decades.

[The Chair, Conservative, John Brassard]

Thank you, Mr. Chang.

You'll note that the bells are ringing in the chamber. We had UC at the beginning to continue on. I'm going to give everybody 10 minutes to go upstairs. We're in the same building.

Mr. Bonin, you have—

[Linda Lapointe, Liberal, Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, QC]

Excuse me, Mr. Chair.

[The Chair, Conservative, John Brassard]

Yes.

[Linda Lapointe, Liberal, Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, QC]

Is it possible to turn on the television to look at the time?

[The Chair, Conservative, John Brassard]

I'll make sure that the clerk does that.

[Linda Lapointe, Liberal, Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, QC]

Thank you.

[The Chair, Conservative, John Brassard]

Mr. Bonin, you have the floor for two and a half minutes.

[Patrick Bonin, Bloc, Repentigny, QC]

Mr. Chair, could you ask the witness to provide the letter he sent to the commissioner and the explanation of the conflict of interest screen he referenced?

[The Chair, Conservative, John Brassard]

The committee needs to pass a motion to get that letter. It's not up to me to ask the minister that. As chair, it's not my responsibility to ask the minister to produce a letter.

[Patrick Bonin, Bloc, Repentigny, QC]

Therefore, I'd like to move a motion to that effect. It would simply be as follows:

That, pursuant to Standing Order 108(1), the committee request that the minister produce and make public the letter and the ethics screen he is referring to in his testimony.

I think it's in the public interest.

[The Chair, Conservative, John Brassard]

Okay.

Mr. Bonin has moved a motion. The floor is open for debate.

I don't see any hands. We'll go to the vote.

Do we have unanimous consent on the part of the committee for the minister to produce the documents that Mr. Bonin has asked for?

[Some hon. members]

No.

[The Chair, Conservative, John Brassard]

We don't, so let's go to a vote.

(Motion negatived: nays 5; yeas 4)

The motion for the minister to produce the documents to the committee has been defeated.

Mr. Bonin, you only have 25 seconds left.

[Patrick Bonin, Bloc, Repentigny, QC]

Mr. Champagne, Alto's senior executives, one of which is your wife, obviously, were awarded a bonus. Did your wife receive a bonus? We hear about bonuses. Do you know if she received a bonus as part of her duties at Alto?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC]

Mr. Chair, I don't know what the member's talking about. What I can tell you—

[Patrick Bonin, Bloc, Repentigny, QC]

You're not answering the question.