Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Welcome, everyone. Please excuse the delay today. I have two or three comments, and then I'll ask a quick question.
I've heard some viewpoints on infrastructure. I'm very familiar with the P3 model in Ontario. I was on a bond desk for one of the major banks, and I understand how the financing works for P3s and the different models of the build to maintain, operate, and so forth. We're having the York Spadina subway extension come up to Vaughan and, starting in a couple of weeks, we'll have a brand new hospital being built in the city of Vaughan, which is a P3 model. As well, our government here has put forward a historic plan to invest over $180 billion in infrastructure over the next 12 years.
A saying I've heard that struck me as important is this one: progress over process. We want to get projects built. We don't want to chat about them for a long, long time. I think that's been one of the causes of the infrastructure gap or deficit, however you want to measure it and whatever relative means you want to measure it by. This progress over process means basically getting the shovels going as quickly as possible.
When I tack back to the infrastructure bank, I say to myself that this is one tool to accelerate and broaden the infrastructure build and the capital that's going to be utilized to build this infrastructure. That's the way I humbly look at it. I understand the importance of governance and evidence-based decision-making for the projects, but the idea is a very powerful idea. I applaud our government for putting it forward. I applaud our government for having the flexibility in governing to look at this mechanism in addition to the other models out there in Canada. Also, I applaud ourselves for looking at process, but more importantly, looking at progress.
I have a quick question for the C.D. Howe Institute.
When you look at infrastructure build-out, you see that the role private capital can play is very powerful. I'd like you to comment on that, please.