Mr. Chair, I would like to thank the committee for inviting me to discuss the proposed legislation on one Canadian economy and the critical importance of advancing projects of national interest.
This is not only a period of profound change for Canada; it is also a pivotal moment. As my colleague just said, U.S. tariffs and rising protectionism are threatening Canadian jobs and businesses. Rarely have global markets been so volatile. Given this new reality, Canadians expect their government to act boldly, decisively and with solidarity.
At this crucial time, Canada needs to be able to build strategic infrastructure, transportation corridors and energy networks that are essential for Canadians' prosperity and economic security. We must be able to move our resources from coast to coast to coast and get them to the world more quickly and more reliably. This is an opportunity for the federal government to work with provinces and territories and with indigenous partners to identify and accelerate the projects we need right now to assure our autonomy, our security and our trade diversification. The one Canadian economy act aims to do just that. It's a key tool to secure Canadian jobs for this generation, and for generations to come, as all of us would hope.
At the recent first ministers' meeting in Saskatoon, where Chrystia and I and our colleague the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources were present, premiers from every political stripe expressed their enthusiastic support for advancing nation-building projects, because premiers understood that in order for Canada to succeed, we must build one Canadian economy out of 13 and thereby build a shared future.
Too often, it takes a long time for decisions to be made about projects that have the potential to connect our country and grow our economy. The one Canadian economy bill is our chance to do things differently while remaining true to our values and our responsibilities as a country, of course.
We can and will accelerate the approval of projects, while obviously continuing to abide by constitutionally mandated responsibilities towards indigenous peoples and ensuring the protection and the environmental assessments that impose as well. To that end, the government will set up a new major projects office that will provide a seamless single point of contact for project proponents once they're designated and for stakeholders, provinces and indigenous partners. My colleague will expand on many of these aspects.
The one Canadian economy act is about nation-building on a scale not seen for generations. It's about transitioning from "Should we build?" to "How do we build?" The Prime Minister and our government have been clear about our objectives. We hope these objectives are shared by members of this committee and members in the other House. Canadians have entrusted us to do things differently and better and to move nation-building projects forward. We believe this legislation is an important step in that direction.
After you hear the phenomenal comments from my colleague, we look forward, as you can imagine, to your questions.