Human Resources Committee on Jan. 26th, 2026

[The Chair (Robert Morrissey (Egmont, Lib.)), Liberal, Bobby Morrissey]

I call the meeting to order.

Good afternoon, committee members. Welcome to meeting 21 of the Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities.

The clerk has advised that we have a quorum. No one is appearing virtually and everybody is in the room, which means translation should be fine.

Today's meeting is taking place in a hybrid format, pursuant to the Standing Orders. Members are attending in the room in person. I would ask all members to familiarize themselves with the headset. Choose the official language in which you prefer to participate. Make sure you're on the right channel so that we don't have disruptions. If there is a breakdown in translation, please get my attention by raising your hand, and we'll suspend while it is corrected.

For the benefit of the interpreters, please refrain from tapping on the boom. As well, make sure all your devices are silenced before we begin the meeting.

Please wait until I recognize you by name before speaking, and address all comments through the chair.

Our subject matter is part 5, divisions 34, 36 and 44 of Bill C-15, an act to implement certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on November 4, 2025.

Ms. Koutrakis, before I introduce the witness, you had your hand up. Is it related to this?

[Annie Koutrakis, Liberal, Vimy, QC]

Yes, it is. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Happy new year, colleagues. It's really great to be back here and see you all.

Mr. Chair, if you seek it, I think you will find you have unanimous consent for the following motion, which our colleagues across moved at FINA:

That the committee undertake a subject-matter study of Bill C-15, specifically clause 571 (Division 34), clauses 573 to 575 (Division 36), and clause 599 (Division 44); and that the committee invite the following witnesses:

the Minister of Housing and Infrastructure for one hour,

the Minister of Jobs and Families for one hour,

the Auditor General and Ana Bailão, each for one hour,

and any other witnesses the committee deems relevant; and

That the committee forward any recommendations or suggested amendments arising from this study to the Standing Committee on Finance no later than Thursday, February 27, 2026.

I do have it in French as well.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bobby Morrissey]

Please circulate it.

The members of the committee have heard the motion of Ms. Koutrakis.

Go ahead, Mr. Genuis, on the motion.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Thank you, Chair.

Will that be distributed by email momentarily? Can we have two minutes?

[The Chair, Liberal, Bobby Morrissey]

You certainly can. We'll suspend for two moments while it is being circulated.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bobby Morrissey]

We're back in session.

[Andréanne Larouche, Bloc, Shefford, QC]

I apologize Mr. Chair, but I wasn't on the distribution list. I just received the motion. Could we suspend the meeting for a few more minutes?

[The Chair, Liberal, Bobby Morrissey]

Yes, we can, Ms. Larouche. Would one minute be enough?

[Andréanne Larouche, Bloc, Shefford, QC]

A minute or two should be enough.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bobby Morrissey]

Okay.

I'll suspend for two more moments.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bobby Morrissey]

Committee members, the committee was suspended for a moment while members were reviewing a motion.

Mr. Genuis, go ahead on the motion of Ms. Koutrakis.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Mr. Chair, we support this motion. However, we had an informal discussion today, and I think there's consent from the committee to add that the deadline to submit the names of other witnesses would be the day of our next meeting.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bobby Morrissey]

You heard that. Are you good with that?

[Annie Koutrakis, Liberal, Vimy, QC]

We're okay with that. We support the amendment.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bobby Morrissey]

Okay.

We've heard the amendment moved by Mr. Genuis. Is it agreed?

(Amendment agreed to [See Minutes of Proceedings])

Seeing unanimity, we're on the main motion as amended.

Go ahead, Madame Larouche.

[Andréanne Larouche, Bloc, Shefford, QC]

Could you read the amended motion, please, Mr. Chair, so it's easier to follow?

[The Chair, Liberal, Bobby Morrissey]

Yes. I'll let Mr. Genuis speak to the amendment. It was to give a date for additional witnesses.

Go ahead, Mr. Genuis.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Yes, exactly. The motion says:

“and any other witnesses the Committee deems relevant;”

I only suggested that the deadline to submit the names of other witnesses be the day of our next meeting.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bobby Morrissey]

Thank you, Mr. Genuis and Mrs. Larouche.

Then, on the motion as amended, are we all in agreement?

(Motion as amended agreed to [See Minutes of Proceedings])

Seeing agreement, that's clarified.

I would now like to continue with introducing our witnesses for today.

We have with us the Minister of Housing and Infrastructure, the Honourable Gregor Robertson, accompanied by Paul Halucha, deputy minister; Michelle Baron, assistant deputy minister, corporate services, and chief financial officer; Michel Tremblay, chief financial officer and senior vice-president, corporate services, CMHC; and Joël Hupé, chief financial and administrative officer with the Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority.

Minister, you have up to five minutes for your opening statement.

[Gregor Robertson, Liberal, Minister of Housing and Infrastructure]

Thank you, Mr. Chair and committee members, for inviting me to appear before you today to discuss the proposed measures in Bill C-15, the budget implementation act.

I am pleased to be joined here today by several officials who can answer any of the more technical questions you may have.

As the committee is aware, housing is one of our government's top priorities. That is why in September, Prime Minister Carney and I launched Build Canada Homes, a new federal agency with the mandate to scale up the supply of affordable housing across Canada.

Importantly, Build Canada Homes is part of a much broader set of measures to catalyze the housing industry. By leveraging public lands, deploying flexible financial tools and catalyzing modern methods of construction, the agency is driving a more productive and innovative homebuilding sector.

However, the impact of Build Canada Homes is poised to go well beyond just the housing sector. As a nimble and focused agency, Build Canada Homes is a fundamental shift in how the federal government can invest in our Canadian economy. Build Canada Homes is about building, but it's also about buying, and that's buying Canadian. In these turbulent times, the federal government is committed to being Canada's best customer to help Canadian industries scale up and retool amidst global uncertainty.

Central to Build Canada Homes' mandate is to prioritize projects that use Canadian materials and therefore strengthen domestic supply chains. Every new home means more demand for Canadian steel, aluminum and lumber, and as that construction ramps up, we will grow, train and support Canada's skilled workforce, creating good-paying jobs along the way.

To do all of this critical work, budget 2025 committed an initial investment of $13 billion over five years to support Build Canada Homes. The measures proposed under Bill C-15 here would operationalize Build Canada Homes and ensure that it has the required resources to deliver results, results that Canadians are counting on: from the construction worker who's looking for work to young people looking for their first home for their growing family.

Specifically, these measures will authorize payments out of the consolidated revenue fund of up to $11.5 billion to support Build Canada Homes' operations and activities, primarily the activities in financing affordable housing across the country. This funding will enable the agency to acquire land, partner with developers and make investments that accelerate housing construction through modern construction methods like factory-built housing. We cannot build hundreds of thousands of new homes without the infrastructure that makes communities work.

That brings me to division 4 of part 5 in Bill C-15, which amends the Canada Infrastructure Bank Act.

Budget 2025 announced our government's intention to increase the Canada Infrastructure Bank's statutory capital from $35 billion to $45 billion. This $10-billion increase is a strategic investment in Canada's future. The increase in capital will unlock financing for major projects that drive national priorities. First and foremost is housing, along with trade, decarbonization and indigenous economic development, as well as new investments in key nation-building projects and advanced technologies like AI, all of those in line with the CIB's mandate. These investments will be very impactful and grounded in the real needs of communities across Canada.

The proposed investment is about investing smarter and maximizing the impact of the public dollar. By strengthening the CIB's capital base, the infrastructure bank's funding, we are enabling it to keep pace with pressing national infrastructure needs, supporting good jobs, inclusive growth and a more resilient future for everyone in Canada.

The budget implementation act 2025 is essential to deliver affordable housing at scale and to build the infrastructure required to build at that scale. Our government was elected with a strong mandate to make the generational investments that we need right now and to build strong and sustainable communities.

Thank you again for inviting me. I look forward to answering your questions.

Thank you everyone.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bobby Morrissey]

Thank you, Minister Robertson.

You were on time. We will begin the first round, which is six minutes, with Ms. Lewis.

You have six minutes, Ms. Lewis.

[Leslyn Lewis, Conservative, Haldimand—Norfolk, ON]

Thank you, Minister, for coming today.

Minister, this committee that you're appearing in front of today exists to ensure that public policy serves the people first. Your government has increased the Canada Infrastructure Bank's budget by $10 billion while expanding its role into AI-enabled digital infrastructure. Can you point me to specific legislation in which Parliament explicitly approved expanding the Canada Infrastructure Bank's mandate from traditional infrastructure like bridges, roads and water systems into AI, the cloud and digital systems?

[Gregor Robertson, Liberal, Vancouver Fraserview—South Burnaby, BC]

Through the chair, thanks to the member for the question.

The CIB, to date, has indeed focused on what we call traditional infrastructure, as you mentioned. Given the growth opportunities we have as a country and given the scale of opportunity with projects of national interest right now, whether they be in energy or in technology like artificial intelligence, Canada is positioned to lead in these sectors.

The Infrastructure Bank is a great tool for investing in the infrastructure required to make sure that these industries can scale and be successful, not only creating jobs in Canada but also creating opportunities to grow our economy in export markets.

[Leslyn Lewis, Conservative, Haldimand—Norfolk, ON]

Thank you for the answer, Minister.

I take from that that there is no legislation that has approved this expansion of $10 billion, and this has also not come before Parliament.

AI services have the potential to drastically alter how Canadians access government services. Who decided that AI and digital services systems now qualify as infrastructure, and why was that decision not brought to Parliament or presented in a stand-alone bill?

[Gregor Robertson, Liberal, Vancouver Fraserview—South Burnaby, BC]

The Canada Infrastructure Bank's priorities are in priorities letters and then part of the corporate plan. Also, the increase from $35 billion to $45 billion was in the budget policy statement. The legislation does not have the expressed purposes of the funding. They're in the priorities letters and then the corporate plan of the CIB.