Evidence of meeting #59 for Procedure and House Affairs in the 41st Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was lethbridge.
A recording is available from Parliament.
11:40 a.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Joe Preston
It's a mixture of Crowfoot and Lethbridge and Macleod. It's to the west of Lethbridge.
11:45 a.m.
NDP
Nathan Cullen NDP Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC
I think this is for our committee's work, particularly in places with new ridings. You don't have anybody who is offering up support for what it's going to look like and defending the work that's going to be done in this new....that's a challenge.
11:45 a.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Joe Preston
Are there any further questions?
Okay. We'll leave it and we'll wait for our next guests.
11:54 a.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Joe Preston
We'll come back in so that we can talk about this. I marvel at the technology around this. So you're going to overlay what they're requesting over the top of what the last boundary map looked like from the commission. And the red lines show what the boundaries commission has said?
11:54 a.m.
A voice
Yes.
11:54 a.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Joe Preston
In the northeast, the piece of Crowfoot now goes over into what was the new riding of Bow River. Bow River used to end right at the southern border of Lethbridge, and now picks up those two counties below it. Lethbridge has pretty much stayed the same in both maps. Medicine Hat loses a little piece up there to Crowfoot.
11:55 a.m.
NDP
Alexandrine Latendresse NDP Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC
Isn't it the other way around? It's part of Battle River—Crowfoot that goes to Medicine Hat.
11:55 a.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Joe Preston
Right. Up to what I assume is a natural boundary, which is the South Saskatchewan River.
11:55 a.m.
Conservative
11:55 a.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Joe Preston
Are there any questions on what we're seeing on the overlay?
I have to say that Mr. Cullen has made a very good point here that each of the members have said what's perfect and how it mixes right, but this new Bow River riding has been created and there currently isn't someone who represents it.
11:55 a.m.
NDP
Nathan Cullen NDP Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC
I don't know how we as a committee.... Say there are communities in that riding that absolutely hate this. We have no capacity. I'm not suggesting that we get the capacity, we just don't know. We've heard from those that are impacted directly and implicitly by this in those three or four counties, but we haven't heard anybody from Vulcan County and we're not going to. It's just an interesting thing for the committee to—
11:55 a.m.
Conservative
11:55 a.m.
NDP
Nathan Cullen NDP Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC
But what the commission proposed was for Vulcan County to be down with Taber and that's it. Now we're not going to hear from somebody down in Ross Lake how they feel about being connected to Milo in Vulcan County. I don't know what that drive is like. Others who do it more frequently can tell us but you'd have to leave your riding a few times to get around, that's for sure.
11:55 a.m.
Conservative
Scott Armstrong Conservative Cumberland—Colchester—Musquodoboit Valley, NS
I think the boundaries commission would have to step in because they have information that we don't.
11:55 a.m.
Conservative
Scott Armstrong Conservative Cumberland—Colchester—Musquodoboit Valley, NS
They may reject what we're saying because it doesn't make sense for the riding, it doesn't have representation.
11:55 a.m.
Conservative
Scott Reid Conservative Lanark—Frontenac—Lennox and Addington, ON
We talked about Lethbridge being the natural centre for all of the different parts of the Bow River riding, essentially it surrounds Lethbridge like the letter C. And I know that's one of the philosophies that the Alberta boundaries commission discussed. Do we create a hub and spoke? Do we create doughnut ridings? That's almost a doughnut riding being proposed there. Next, they go through and discuss the merits and demerits. I thought it was a good discussion. Without commenting on their conclusions, I thought they were trying to be fair about that.
The question I have is it's not really 100% a doughnut surrounding Lethbridge as its natural centre. The top part is actually closely linked to Calgary. I bet people there never find themselves going up to Lethbridge.
My question was to the Elections Canada people. The part that's not in your map right now, if you could just go to that part, to the top up near Wheatland and so on. What percentage of the population is in that northern area, which is clearly going to be Calgary Centre? What percentage of the Bow River riding is in that chunk?
11:55 a.m.
Team Leader, Technical Expert, Electoral Geography, Elections Canada
I can confirm that number.
11:55 a.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Joe Preston
There are four or five counties there. But you're right, those four counties would have more to do with Calgary.
11:55 a.m.
NDP
Nathan Cullen NDP Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC
The commission obviously felt comfortable enough bringing some of those near Lethbridge communities together with these ones that are close to Calgary and found some common ground. I'm assuming it's mostly farming country, and a little bit of energy.
It's fascinating. It's Solomon's choice on this stuff.
11:55 a.m.
NDP
Nycole Turmel NDP Hull—Aylmer, QC
Mr. Chair, I have a question about procedure.
At the end, during the review, would it be possible to have all of the proposals made by the members grouped together and all of the proposals made by the commissioners grouped together, for the entire province? We would like to see all of the results and their impact. We want to see if omissions have been made or if there are things that are not working, so that we have a better understanding and can prepare our report.
Noon
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Joe Preston
When we go to write the Alberta report, then I suggest that would be correct. We would see the northern areas that the members talked about the other day, the Peace River piece and the Fort McMurray piece and whether it gets down into where we're talking about. And then the same thing today; we're going from the south upwards. We're about to have a couple of members from Calgary. So, you're right; I think we'll need to see—
Noon
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Joe Preston
Put all the changes on and see what it looks like then. Okay?
This Thursday we have one member, and then we're going to talk about the Alberta report. At that time we'll look at the province in its entirety.
