Mr. Speaker, the transport minister stated in this House that the problems of Montreal airports were not his concern since their management had been transferred to ADM. This is an easy answer to avoid getting involved.
The minister is abdicating his political responsibilities, hiding behind a management agreement he himself negotiated. However, the difficulties faced by Montreal airports are, to a large extent, due to the bad decisions Ottawa has been making on this issue since the 1970s.
In Canada, air transportation comes under federal jurisdiction. Consequently, it is this the government which negotiated and signed the present lease with ADM, thereby giving it certain responsibilities. The government must ask ADM to hold real consultations before making any decision.