Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Mr. Chairman, this is from the Emerson report from 2015. It says:
By 2060, an expected 350 percent increase in world trade will tilt in favour of the emerging economies, and their exports will become more specialized, entailing higher value-added activities. It will be important to anticipate the demands on our transportation sector and develop policies and infrastructure to support these trends.
With that, as part of the Emerson report, and taking into consideration the many reports we've completed that were identified earlier on, I have a question for the supply chain task force members. Do you feel we should be moving forward with a multimodal transportation labour strategy, including all methods of transportation, with a goal of strengthening our international trade performance? This would take into consideration the recommendations contained within the following studies: the Canadian Transportation Act review; the Emerson report; the “Interim Report on Establishing a Canadian Transportation and Logistics Strategy”, which this committee completed in the past; the ports modernization review; the St. Lawrence Seaway review; the blue economy strategy; the supply chain study most recently completed by this committee; and the most recent final report of the national supply chain task force, 2022.
To get a bit more granular, I will give you an example. In Niagara we're embarking on a capital project—a Great Lakes innovation and training facility. The focus of this facility is going to be a campus that will be preparing and training the next generation of transportation specialists; integrating distribution and logistics and working hand in hand with the up-to-date movement of goods along strategic trade corridors, such as that on the Great Lakes; integrating with road, rail and air; and aligning with up-to-date data analysis leading to integrated management.
Therefore, is it fair to state that yesterday's drivers, engineers, captains and pilots, while moving goods, are tomorrow's transportation specialists— operators and data and logistics managers—trained to offer additional corporate and customer value through fluidity, and recognized as a skilled trade?
I pose that question to the two individuals specifically because it's 2022. With that said, and all of what I just mentioned, we're looking at the movement of goods, and those who are moving our goods, as being more than just drivers. They are, in fact, transportation specialists. They should be trained in that manner and recognized through a skilled trade. Would you agree?
Jean or Louise, go ahead.