Mr. Speaker, I would like you to inform the Minister of Transport that, according to our traditions, the remarks I made do not require an apology. However, since I consider myself an honest person, I would like you to tell the minister that my office is currently doing some research to determine if indeed the city of Campbellton is located in the riding of Restigouche-Chaleur, as the minister said. If so, you may tell the Minister of Transport that I will make the necessary corrections today at the appropriate time. But I do not think that I need to apologize. In any event, with the kind of remarks he makes on a regular basis, the Minister of Transport himself is the one who has had many opportunities to apologize in this House.
Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Transport, who assures us that he is transparent, has admitted the fact that the commercialization task force chaired by the hon. member for Kenora-Rainy River is made up of Liberals only. He mentioned the busy schedule of the transport committee. I would like to inform the Minister of Transport that around February 18, 1994, when the transport committee was set up, I, as official opposition critic representing the Bloc Quebecois, asked that rail transportation be examined as a priority.
At that time, I made reference to the Liberal task force report on VIA Rail cuts made in 1989, a report that was signed by the Minister of Transport himself. I said that before going any further in the abandonment of rail lines, we should consult the users and the regions. That is why I asked that rail transportation be put on the committee's agenda on February 18. The Liberal majority on the transport committee said that such a study could jeopardize the CN-CP merger project that was being considered at the time. The Liberals asked that the study be postponed. The report was to be presented at the end of June.
We adjourned in June. Mr. Speaker, I would like you to inform the Minister of Transport that on September 19, when the session resumed, I asked again if we were going to examine rail transportation as a priority since the merger project was at a standstill. I was told that airports were higher on the priority list and that such a study could hinder the negotiation process.
I argued in committee that we could agree not to hear any representative of the employees or the management of the companies concerned, but that we could hear regional representatives who would come and explain to us the importance of rail transportation to the economic development of a region. Once again, my proposal was defeated by the Liberal majority on the committee.
On September 29, the minister announced the establishment of a Liberal partisan task force to study the issue. If the minister is transparent, why did he not include a representative of the official opposition and a representative of the third party on this task force?