Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for Beauport—Limoilou.
I rise today with the utmost respect for the families and communities that were affected by the Mirabel expropriations. As many here know, I have lived in the Lower Laurentians region for a number of years. My riding of Rivière-des-Milles-Îles includes Deux-Montagnes, Saint-Eustache, Boisbriand and Rosemère. It is just south of Mirabel. I have always worked in the Lower Laurentians. I raised my family there. I have connected with people from all over the Lower Laurentians and Laval. The issue that the Bloc Québécois is talking about is not abstract to me. It brings to mind faces, stories and memories.
What happened in 1969 had a profound impact on thousands of people, families that lost their homes, their lands and their communities, often without even understanding what was happening and with no way to defend themselves. At the time, we lived in Laval, and my father had a stable. That was when everyone's farms were expropriated. My father wanted to update his stable and took me, as a young girl, to buy equipment in Mirabel, in Sainte-Scholastique. I still remember how heartbreaking it was to see the deserted farmlands and the empty barns. It was so sad. That is what struck me then as a little girl. Again, I have a lot of respect for the families that went through this.
That moment in history is a wound that has not yet healed. The trauma is transferred from one generation to the next. It is important to acknowledge that with humility. I ran four times in Rivière-des-Mille-Îles and I went door knocking all four times. Every time I would meet people from the Mirabel area—it was not Mirabel at the time; it was Sainte-Scholastique, Saint-Janvier, four or five towns that merged. When I knock on doors in Saint-Eustache, I still meet people whose land was expropriated.
Recognizing this reality is not about making excuses; it is about recognizing that mistakes were made, saying that this should not have happened, and committing to doing better. Since then, our legislation has changed, our practices have evolved, and the way we work in our communities has been transformed. Today, we can no longer impose a bill without consultation, we can no longer act without transparency, and we can no longer ignore citizens. Frankly, that is a good thing.
High-speed rail is an important project for our country. Do my colleagues know that the first segment to be built will be between Montreal and Ottawa, with 25 trains running per day? Travelling from Toronto to Montreal will take three hours by train. It will take two hours to get from Toronto to Ottawa and one hour to get from Montreal to Ottawa. Also, going from Montreal to Quebec City will take an hour and a half. The corridor will need to be 60 metres wide for the train to pass. The project will span about 1,000 kilometres once the project is completed. Evidently, this will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 100,000 tonnes, which is huge. That is what we want: to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
At the same time, 92% of Ontarians and Quebeckers support this project. Obviously, Ontario and Quebec support the project, as do the mayors of Ottawa, Toronto and Montreal, and I would add Laval as well. The first phase of consultations is currently under way. Today, in Saint-Eustache, one of the four cities in my riding, there will be consultations in the afternoon and evening. I want people to know that if they are in Saint-Eustache, they can go to the consultations today and see what is on offer. They will be able to ask questions. Now is the time.
This project will create jobs, 50,000 of them. It will use our materials. It will use our steel and aluminum. It will employ people from Quebec City, Trois-Rivières, Laval, Montreal, Ottawa and Toronto. It will bring our regions closer together.
It will improve our mobility. It will also support our economy. There will also be a very positive impact on the environment. This is a project that will leave its mark on an entire generation. I hope I will have the opportunity and the privilege to go from Quebec City to Windsor or Toronto. I hope I will be able to do that in my lifetime. To make that happen, we have to proceed respectfully, and that is exactly what the law provides for.
The law requires consultations. It provides for serious assessments. It promotes voluntary acquisition. It limits expropriation. It guarantees fair compensation. It recognizes the rights of communities. It puts Canadians at the heart of the process. I understand the concerns that have been shared. I understand that there are fears. I also understand the mistrust that people sometimes feel. When someone has experienced an injustice, they become more vigilant. That is normal. What the people of Mirabel went through was unacceptable. I sincerely believe that we now have the tools to do things differently. We have learned from the past. We have strengthened our laws since then, and we have changed our culture. We are a long way from the 1960s and 1970s. We live in a Canada that listens better, holds more consultations and is more respectful.
In my riding, people tell me two things: one, that they want their history to be respected, and two, that they want their children to have a future. They want jobs—good jobs. They want modern infrastructure and efficient services. They want responsible development. They want us to move forward without forgetting where we came from.
This debate should not divide us. It should unite us all in pursuit of a common goal. We want to build a major project without repeating the mistakes of the past. We should all be united around a simple idea. It is possible to be both ambitious and humane. It is possible to build and think big while listening to people. It is possible to invest in the future without hurting communities. I sincerely believe that this bill is the key. It will allow us to bring this project to fruition, protect residents and take action respectfully.
In closing, I want to tell the families in Mirabel and the families of Rivière-des-Mille-Îles that their history matters, that their voices matter and that their experience is guiding us. I want to tell young people that we are working hard to make their country modern, fair and united. We can do both, but we must all work together to make it happen.