Mr. Speaker, that was more or less the answer I received the first time, and that is problematic.
For example, in Nova Scotia, one city alone, Cape Breton Regional Municipality, has a $450 million need for a new water plant. That need was driven by changes that were decided upon in this House. When federal water standards were changed, obligations were downloaded, or side-loaded as cities often describe it, onto the regional municipalities.
The amount of money for the province is equal to the need of one single municipality. That shows how inadequate the funding is. Not only that, the money that is being talked about does not arrive for 10 years.
The question is very simple. Will the budget tomorrow, and the plan of the government, make that money an annual amount, and make it predictable to cities? Is it sufficient to get things like the water plant in Sydney, Nova Scotia, built, or are they going to have to wait 10 years?
The subsequent question is, where is the money for the repair of existing infrastructure? We have heard the plans for new infrastructure, but repair is just as critical.
The final component to this, which flows from many of these projects, is the issue of housing. Housing is not an eligible category under the infrastructure program. As a result, wait lists across the country are magnificent. There are 200,000 people in Toronto alone waiting for housing.
I will give a quick recap. Is the money going to be annual? Is it going to be more than is currently announced? Is housing going to be eligible?