Mr. Speaker, in this House, on May 10, I asked the minister of Transport a question on the federal government's responsibility with regard to the Quebec bridge.
Again, in his answer, the minister of Transport refused to acknowledge that the federal government had any responsibility with regard to repairing the Quebec bridge. Well, his government changed its mind because last week, on Friday, June 7, during a meeting at the Quebec Citadel, Canada's Prime Minister and Quebec's premier entered into an agreement establishing the costs to be assumed by the various parties: 60 per cent for CN, 30 per cent for the provincial government and 10 per cent for the federal government, through its Department of Transport which, until then, had refused to acknowledge its responsibility.
Let me tell you a short story. This afternoon-it is purely a coincidence-I asked a question on another subject, the closure of a CN service shop, and the minister of Transport refused to acknowledge his responsibility in this area. So, in spite of everything, I remain optimistic regarding this matter, because of the minister's flip-flop on the issue of the Quebec bridge.
But this is not the point. Now that the issue has been settled, I would like to ask the Minister of Transport, or his representative, what led him to change his answer, which he had given me on several occasions, including on May 10, and recognize that the federal government did have responsibility, since it is paying 10 per cent.
I would also like to ask him not to change his mind and to stand by this good decision regarding repairs to the Quebec bridge, which is a significant symbol in the Quebec City area. I would like to know the terms of the agreement, and how long the federal government's involvement-the 10 per cent previously mentioned-will last. I would also like to ask the minister if he recognizes that the federal government can pay immediately or as soon as possible, because people believe that the repairs only involve a paint job on the Quebec bridge, when in fact, important girders have to be replaced. It has been estimated that materials represent a third of the costs involved.
I would like to ask the minister why could we not use the services of a company in my own riding, namely Dominion Bridge, which actually built the bridge and recently acquired the MIL Davie shipyard. Since the government has given no money to the MIL Davie shipyard in the last three years, the Transport Department has a good opportunity to influence CN to have the work carried out by Dominion Bridge's workers at MIL Davie, because we know that its president, Mr. Tellier, is a former senior public servant. They say it is private, but we know that he has spent his whole life here.