Mr. Speaker, consultations were held throughout northern Ontario on FedNor in particular and the budget in general.
There was no mention in the budget about this issue and people in Thunder Bay are very worried, not only in my riding but throughout the north. They did not see any mention in the budget of what is of concern to them. They do not need any more worries. They want reassurance.
As we have been holding these hearings, the people have been telling us, in very plan language, that now is the time for government to recognize the needs of the regions. When they do not hear mention of the regional programs, whether it is FedNor or ACOA or the others, then all this talk in government of diversification means that there is a role for government to play. In the regions, a little can go a long way. Government must recognize that FedNor is already under-resourced. Indeed, it needs more money.
Last year's cuts of $4.6 million must be replaced and indeed upgraded. There is certainly enough demand, as I believe the parliamentary secretary is well aware, when we talk about the components through which FedNor administers the COMRIF program in the province of Ontario.
Just the other day the minister responsible for FedNor sent me a letter that talked of that $298 million over the next five years. That $298 million over five years may seem like a lot, but in the province of Ontario that money is for eligible counties, regions and municipalities under 250,000 people. We are talking about almost 375 jurisdictions of the 446 that exist in Ontario.
What happened over the past three intakes for infrastructure was that the engineering and professional fees were not included as part of that allocation. It becomes very costly for small communities and there is no guarantee that they will get in under any of those programs. There is no list. If one is successful the first time, one can apply a second or third time.
These municipalities do not get any advice as to the validity of their cases. They can apply three times and be out of pocket. Essentially it becomes a lottery to them. These become very heavy hits for small communities. What we need is a process to tell them where they are. It should have been in the budget. If they are not going to be successful in the first round, then at least they should know that they are on the list somewhere.
Also in the province of Ontario there are roads boards, which are composed of volunteers. In the past three intakes, only one has been successful in its COMRIF application. Their question on the budget is that if they are not going to be eligible, why does infrastructure include them? Why make them go through all these hoops, particularly when it is so difficult for them to come up with this money in the first place?
The budget also should have addressed the distribution of the gas tax to these roads boards in Ontario. As the parliamentary secretary is well aware--