Madam Speaker, I rise this evening to speak about a matter that is very important to the people of Lac-Mégantic, Nantes, Frontenac and the entire Granit RCM. I am referring to the Lac-Mégantic rail bypass.
In 2018, the Prime Minister of Canada and member for Papineau and the Premier of Quebec, together with the then transport minister, announced the construction of the Lac-Mégantic rail bypass to stop the train from passing through downtown Lac-Mégantic, the site of the tragedy that occurred in July 2013, which unfortunately no one can forget.
There have been many changes in the past weeks and months. There is a new minister and there are all kinds of rumours and discussions in the Lac-Mégantic region concerning the 2023 deadline for construction of the rail bypass, which was announced in 2018. The train should stop running through the downtown area by 2023.
One of the concerns was that there were delays in the land acquisition process and that the landowners still did not know how much money they were entitled to for having to give up their land because of the new route for the rail line. As I said, a new minister was appointed and, just recently, the president and CEO of Canadian Pacific stated in a letter that if significant legislative changes were not brought in and if the government did not proceed with its share of the work by fall, the 2023 deadline would be unrealistic and the project could not be completed within the time frame announced in 2018.
As a result, several things happened last week. Last Monday, the mayor of Lac-Mégantic had the town council adopt an emergency resolution calling on the government and CP to agree to meet the 2023 deadline. The town council also asked all the parties in the House of Commons to agree to work together to ensure the 2023 deadline will be met.
I followed up on the request from the Municipality of Lac-Mégantic and moved a motion calling on all parliamentarians to support the people of Lac-Mégantic and their town council. I am very proud to say that this resolution was adopted by all parliamentarians. The governing party, the official opposition, the Bloc Québécois, the NDP, the Green Party and the independent members all adopted this motion calling on the government to make every effort to get the projected completed by 2023 and to provide the House with a detailed plan of the project by tomorrow.
That deadline is tomorrow, and I have faith that the government will present its plan soon. Perhaps the parliamentary secretary will announce something in a few moments, and I certainly hope so, but I have faith that the government will heed the call of the people of Lac-Mégantic and all the parliamentarians in the House on behalf of those who endured this tragedy.