Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Welcome, Minister Lebel and Minister Fletcher. It's good to see you at the committee.
I notice in the main estimates on page 325 that $349 million was cut from the green infrastructure fund. Out of that, $15 million went to natural gas pipelines; $22 million went to the Beaufort Sea, probably oil; environmental assessments; and $60 million went to....
At any rate, at the end of the day, this green infrastructure fund is short $349 million, according to the main estimates.
Then, you notice that the mayors and councillors came to Parliament Hill last week, and they were saying that they need predictable funding; they need to know precisely how much money. Rather than playing the grant game, they want to take politics out of infrastructure funding. They want more direct transfers. They want to be treated with respect; you understand that. Sometimes you see this money, sometimes you don't.
What do you say to those 200 communities that have boil-water advisories and to the mayors and the councillors looking for transit dollars for crumbling bridges, like the Gardiner Expressway? How do you justify taking $349 million out of the green infrastructure fund?
Mind you, you're adding a few dollars back in, but at the end of the day it's still close to $350 million being cut.