Catherine McKenna

[Questions on the Order Paper, January 27th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, with regard to the government’s election platform commitment to support the NewfoundlandLabrador fixed transportation link, the Government of Canada will work in collaboration with the provincial government towards the development of a proposal.

Further discussions are required before (a) a timeline and (b) budget and allocation of funds can be specified.

[Questions on the Order Paper, January 27th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, with regard to the government’s response to the need for a new sewage treatment plant in Inverness, Nova Scotia, the federal government has not received an application for a new sewage treatment plant. Under the investing in Canada infrastructure program, projects must first be prioritized by the province before they are submitted to Infrastructure Canada for consideration.

[Infrastructure, December 13th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Mississauga—Lakeshore for his question and his hard work.

I am proud to be now in charge of the government's infrastructure plan, which has led to the approval of over 48,000 projects that improve Canadians' quality of life, including public transit, affordable housing and safe drinking water projects. We are just getting started.

In the coming years, we will build on those accomplishments and invest in sustainable projects that are essential to the future of our country, while making Canada more resilient to climate change.

[Infrastructure, December 9th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, it is really important, as we build infrastructure for the next 50 to 100 years, that we consider the impacts of climate change. We know what the science is. We need resilient infrastructure. We need to be protecting communities. We need to also build in a way that reduces emissions.

I look forward to working with the member opposite. Through the green infrastructure fund, there is also the disaster mitigation and adaptation fund to help support efforts to keep the residents of Fredericton safe.

[Infrastructure, December 6th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, today, as we mark the anniversary of the deaths of 14 women, I urge everyone in the House to put their words into action.

Mobility issues are very important for the Quebec City region. That is why will we be investing $5.2 billion in Quebec's public transit infrastructure over the next 10 years. We know that the third link project is very important to the residents of Quebec City and the south shore and to their representatives. We will continue to closely monitor this file. We are still waiting for a proposal.

[Ottawa River Watershed, June 19th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 32(2), and in accordance with Motion No. 104 put forth by my colleague, the hon. member for Ottawa South, and adopted by this House on May 3, 2017, I have the honour to table, in both official languages, a report on the long-term sustainability and management of the Ottawa River watershed, entitled “A study of governance, existing data, potential indicators and values in the Ottawa River Watershed”.

[The Environment, June 18th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, I want to go back to 2015. The member opposite came to Paris. He came when we negotiated the Paris agreement. He came when Canada said that we are back, that we are serious, that we are taking climate action. We negotiated for one year a climate plan with more than 50 measures.

Yesterday, we saw the hypocrisy of the Conservative Party. Those members voted against a climate emergency motion. They voted against taking action to meet our Paris agreement targets. They voted against a safe and cleaner future for our kids. They voted against a $26 trillion opportunity—

[The Environment, June 18th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, why did the Conservatives vote against the motion on the climate emergency? Is it because they refuse to listen to the science on climate change? Do they not realize that we are already paying the price? Are they not aware that even Quebec, the province that the member represents, has a carbon exchange that is working?

Quebec is lowering its emissions, it has a clean technology sector, and Quebeckers are happy. Maybe the member should try talking to Quebeckers.

[Natural Resources, June 18th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, Stephen Harper's failed system gutted environmental assessments. He rammed through a new process, without any consultation, through an omnibus budget bill.

What did that get us? It got us more polarization. It got us fights across the country. What did it not get us? Good projects were not able to go ahead in a timely way.

We built better rules that will ensure that we listen to indigenous peoples, that we protect the environment, that we listen to the concerns of Canadians. Yes, they will ensure that good projects are built in a timely way, because we have $500 billion of economic opportunity—

[Natural Resources, June 18th, 2019]

Mr. Speaker, when we were elected, we said we would bring in better rules for reviewing major projects.

The Conservatives' plan under Stephen Harper was a disaster. The Conservatives did not listen to indigenous peoples and did not want any environmental protections. They did not even want to listen to people who expressed concerns about projects.

That is not how good projects move forward. We must protect the environment and listen to indigenous peoples—