Transport Committee on April 2nd, 2009

[Brian Jean, Conservative, Fort McMurray—Athabasca, AB]

I feel like Horshack in Welcome Back, Kotter: “Oh! Oh! I got the answer!”

How about April 23 for the main estimates and the minister?

[The Chair, Conservative, Merv Tweed]

It would be good, if he would come on the Tuesday and—

[Brian Jean, Conservative, Fort McMurray—Athabasca, AB]

Let's make it tentative for now as to whether it's one hour or two hours. I've been informed that this day fits his schedule now, because I anticipated this question. This would be the best one.

Then I was hoping we could deal with Bill C-7 on the 23rd and again on the 28th.

My only concern with Mr. Bevington's....

I'll just wait until he has a chance to listen to this.

[The Chair, Conservative, Merv Tweed]

I want to clarify. You're talking about the same day, the 23rd again.

[Brian Jean, Conservative, Fort McMurray—Athabasca, AB]

The 21st is the Tuesday, with Bill C-7 being introduced.

[The Chair, Conservative, Merv Tweed]

You said the 23rd.

[Brian Jean, Conservative, Fort McMurray—Athabasca, AB]

Oh, did I?

[The Chair, Conservative, Merv Tweed]

I just wanted to make sure it was clear on the record.

[Colin Mayes, Conservative, Okanagan—Shuswap, BC]

He made a mistake.

[The Chair, Conservative, Merv Tweed]

That's okay.

[Brian Jean, Conservative, Fort McMurray—Athabasca, AB]

So yes, we could do that at that stage. And then I can have additional information for the committee on the 21st. I apologize for that.

My only concern with Mr. Bevington.... We have talked about this issue of infrastructure for a long period of time, and I think you'd find every member in the House is interested in this particular issue. Even before we had the last election, we were talking about doing this—Monsieur Laframboise and others.

My concern is that the closer you get to infrastructure, it's like the more you learn, the more you realize you don't know anything. I'm worried about focusing our agenda specifically on the issues that are necessary, because I want to have the answers we need to have from the officials. I want to make sure that....

I've heard three different descriptions of the infrastructure study that you would want. As a government, we're interested in doing it, but we'd like to see that it's focused. If it's focused on many things, maybe one day we could focus on one and the next day we could focus on another. But I would like to have clarity from the whole committee about what we want to focus on, because it's a big file.

[The Chair, Conservative, Merv Tweed]

We'll go to Mr. Volpe and then Monsieur Laframboise.

[Joe Volpe, Liberal, Eglinton—Lawrence, ON]

I want to thank the parliamentary secretary for his observation that it could be a very large file.

He, of course, has the advantage of working with the Minister of Transport, who is also responsible for infrastructure, and he's working with the Minister of State for Infrastructure. I'm wondering whether he's thinking in terms of having part of this committee become a subcommittee focused specifically on infrastructure issues on an ongoing basis. Obviously it doesn't have to be the full committee. That subcommittee would then report to this committee, and so on.

Is he headed in that direction? We would accommodate him.

[Brian Jean, Conservative, Fort McMurray—Athabasca, AB]

That's actually not my proposal. That would have to be proposed from the other side. We are the masters of our own destiny, so what we decide is a go, but I have no objection at this stage, as long as we continue to have our regular meetings and deal with legislation as a priority in our ongoing meetings. I have no difficulty with that. I'd love to sit on that particular committee.

[Joe Volpe, Liberal, Eglinton—Lawrence, ON]

If we have agreed in principle--sorry, Monsieur Laframboise, for one second--that the government doesn't have a problem with that, can we then revisit this issue once the minister is here on April 21?

[Brian Jean, Conservative, Fort McMurray—Athabasca, AB]

Absolutely.

[The Chair, Conservative, Merv Tweed]

Go ahead, Monsieur Laframboise.

[Mario Laframboise, Bloc, Argenteuil—Papineau—Mirabel, QC]

That is what I was going to suggest. My impression is that, in the next two weeks, the government is going to make a number of announcements about infrastructure. At least, if I was the government, that is what I would do. I would take advantage of the two-week break to do it. It is my impression that, when we come back, we are going to find out about a good number of programs. After meeting the minister, if we think it would be good to bring the steering committee together, we could do that.

[The Chair, Conservative, Merv Tweed]

Basically what we're saying, then, as we move forward, is that on April 21 we will do Bill C-7 with the minister and staff available. On April 23 we will have the minister here on estimates, and if he has the extra hour, we will have some infrastructure discussion at that time.

Mr. Volpe, did you have another point?

[Joe Volpe, Liberal, Eglinton—Lawrence, ON]

There is an issue that has come out on several occasions. I know we've asked a question on it, and Monsieur Laframboise has asked a question on it. Along with the provincial governments of Ontario and Quebec, the government has expended more moneys on the issue of doing a feasibility study on high-speed trains. I'm surprised it didn't include Alberta.

I think this committee would be well served by initiating its own study in this area. There are a lot of feasibility studies that can be reviewed by this committee, but more importantly, we could take a look at some of the technologies and innovations that first surfaced in France and that are now being exported into Spain and developed in Germany.

This committee, in the time I've been on it, has travelled extensively--from room 209, to room 206, to room 214 in Wellington. While it's done some great work in terms of analysis, it really hasn't addressed the issue that is the mainstay of this committee, which is transport, and transportation innovation, and whatever.

In this instance, I would suggest that the committee...and I propose this to my colleagues on this side, Monsieur Laframboise and Monsieur Bevington.

If they agree, the committee could begin a study on high-speed trains, and, parallel to that, plan a trip, so that we could completely finish the job before the end of the year. I also propose that that our analysts prepare a program for us containing all the topics we need for us to be able to conduct the study in all its complexity.

[The Chair, Conservative, Merv Tweed]

Mr. Jean.

[Brian Jean, Conservative, Fort McMurray—Athabasca, AB]

I would like nothing better than to have a high-speed train from Calgary to Fort McMurray. It would be a wonderful thing.

[Joe Volpe, Liberal, Eglinton—Lawrence, ON]

I'd have to be satisfied with Edmonton first.

[Brian Jean, Conservative, Fort McMurray—Athabasca, AB]

Edmo-where?

[Joe Volpe]

It's the edge of the world, I think.