Evidence of meeting #133 for Transport, Infrastructure and Communities in the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was chair.
A recording is available from Parliament.
11:25 a.m.
Deputy Minister, Infrastructure and Communities, Office of Infrastructure of Canada
We have not been involved in that case.
11:25 a.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Judy Sgro
Mr. Jeneroux, I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to cut you off. Otherwise you have 20 seconds left of your time, and if you'd like to challenge the chair, you're free to do that.
11:25 a.m.
Edmonton Riverbend, CPC
Just to reiterate in my last 20 seconds, Madam Chair, all of this exclusively ties to the estimates. I know other committees are trying to shut this down, because they don't want to talk about SNC-Lavalin, but here at this committee.... SNC-Lavalin is a major stakeholder in this country that is building a lot of infrastructure, and we need to get answers on who was involved. Was the infrastructure minister involved too? That's exactly what we're trying to get to the bottom—
11:30 a.m.
Liberal
11:30 a.m.
Liberal
Vance Badawey Liberal Niagara Centre, ON
Thank you, Madam Chair.
I have a question for the Department of Transport.
Mr. Keenan, you mentioned the fact that Transport Canada is seeking to access $1.95 million from the sale of land in Niagara-on-the-Lake. Where do you expect to invest those dollars?
11:30 a.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of Transport
Madam Chair, as the member indicated, we are seeking to access those funds to make progress through assessments and plans to remediate contaminated sites in the Transport Canada portfolio. We unfortunately have a fairly large portfolio of contaminated sites, and so a couple of the key priorities right now would be in Yukon, for example, Watson Lake, and in the Whitehorse airport, there is soil contamination—
11:30 a.m.
Liberal
Vance Badawey Liberal Niagara Centre, ON
If I may, Mr. Keenan, are they not going to be invested back into Niagara?
11:30 a.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of Transport
Those funds are going to the broad portfolio of contaminated sites across the country.
11:30 a.m.
Liberal
Vance Badawey Liberal Niagara Centre, ON
It would be appreciated if, in fact, you can reinvest those Niagara dollars back into Niagara on contaminated sites in Niagara, because there are numerous federally owned contaminated sites in Niagara.
11:30 a.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of Transport
Okay, we'll certainly take a look at that in the context of managing the portfolio.
11:30 a.m.
Liberal
Vance Badawey Liberal Niagara Centre, ON
Thank you, Mr. Keenan. That is just food for thought.
My second question is for Ms. Gillis with respect to infrastructure.
Currently in my riding we have a dire situation in the city of Welland with respect to a formerly federally owned bridge, the Forks Road Bridge, which has now been shut down because of its unfortunate condition. It's in pretty rough shape.
Therefore, I have two questions for you.
The first question is: Is there emergency funding that the municipality can apply for to try to access capital to then repair this bridge and bring it back to order to be utilized by this part of the community?
My second question is: Under the investing in Canada fund, we have partners: the province as well as different municipalities. I'm aware that we can apply to that fund for dollars for projects like this and many other priorities that municipalities have to alleviate the ongoing pressure on property taxpayers and waste-water ratepayers. Therefore, the application process, which I understand was signed over a year ago.... The federal government has over $10 billion in the province of Ontario alone to invest to alleviate these challenges to property taxpayers and waste-water ratepayers to fix projects like that in dire need. Where do we stand on that right now?
11:30 a.m.
Deputy Minister, Infrastructure and Communities, Office of Infrastructure of Canada
I'll start with your second question, because that will work toward your first question.
You are correct. We signed the integrated bilateral agreement with Ontario just about a year ago. We have been working with officials so they understand the process, and they've been developing their own intake process to understand what the priorities for Ontario are and have been working with our new government through that process.
We are certainly looking forward to receiving projects from the Province of Ontario and are ready to review those applications once they are received.
11:30 a.m.
Liberal
Vance Badawey Liberal Niagara Centre, ON
On that topic, the provincial Conservatives, after a year, have yet to actually move forward with that agreement. We're into the billing season. It's right around the corner. Our runway—
11:30 a.m.
Edmonton Riverbend, CPC
Madam Chair, on a point of order, what is the relevance of that?
11:30 a.m.
Liberal
Vance Badawey Liberal Niagara Centre, ON
Therefore, if our runway is getting short, is there an opportunity to actually—
11:30 a.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Judy Sgro
Excuse me, Mr. Badawey, could you just hold it for a second.
Mr. Jeneroux is raising a point of order.
11:30 a.m.
Edmonton Riverbend, CPC
Yes, it's on relevance. I don't see how that ties to the estimates.
11:30 a.m.
Liberal
Vance Badawey Liberal Niagara Centre, ON
It is. It's pertaining to the investing in Canada funds that Ms. Gillis mentioned earlier, with respect to the 4,700 projects.
11:30 a.m.
Edmonton Riverbend, CPC
With the Ontario government, though? I don't believe that's in order.
11:30 a.m.
Liberal
Vance Badawey Liberal Niagara Centre, ON
Madam Chair, if I may, under the investing in Canada plan, Infrastructure Canada alone has 4,700 projects.
11:30 a.m.
Liberal
Vance Badawey Liberal Niagara Centre, ON
With that, my expectation is that those dollars we're expecting to roll out in 2019. Are we at the point right now where we can roll those dollars out, so we can get some of these projects under way?