Mr. Speaker, we always continue to work to have safe industry in the air, maritime, and rail. We will continue to work very hard with the Transportation Safety Board and we continue to work to have safer air travel for travellers and workers.
House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2015, with 33% of the vote.
Air Transportation November 19th, 2013
Mr. Speaker, we always continue to work to have safe industry in the air, maritime, and rail. We will continue to work very hard with the Transportation Safety Board and we continue to work to have safer air travel for travellers and workers.
Champlain Bridge November 18th, 2013
Mr. Speaker, I want to point out that under the building Canada plan, which expires on March 31, 2014—it is still in effect—a number of provinces made public transit one of their priorities when choosing the investments to make from these envelopes. In Quebec, 9% of the envelope was devoted to public transit, while the other provinces invested up to 70% or more in public transit. The Province of Quebec already knows roughly how much money it will get as part of the transfers to the provinces. It is free to choose to make public transit a priority in the next infrastructure plan.
Champlain Bridge November 18th, 2013
Mr. Speaker, it is clear that this member would have closed the bridge long ago. He has rejected all of the measures that we have put in place to maintain the existing bridge. In fact, this government has invested $380 million in maintaining the existing bridge. The bridge is safe. It is monitored daily by groups of engineers. They will continue their work and, in addition, we will build a new bridge.
Champlain Bridge November 7th, 2013
Mr. Speaker, on August 8, 2011, this member and another one of his colleagues said that it remained to be seen whether there would be a toll, that they were still open to the idea and that it had to be discussed.
Today, he is saying that he is against a toll. He changes his mind as often as he changes his shirt. We are building a bridge for the future. We have worked really hard. The recently published Buckland & Taylor report has led us to proceed with more caution. We need to accelerate the construction of the new bridge and ensure that the existing bridge can remain open to traffic in the meantime. We are going to do the work. This bridge is an economic issue, not a political one.
Champlain Bridge November 7th, 2013
Mr. Speaker, of course we are working on building a new bridge, as we announced on October 5, 2011.
However, before building a new bridge, we must first ensure that the existing bridge can still remain open to traffic in the coming years.
This member and his party voted against an investment of $380 million to maintain the existing bridge so that it is usable until the new bridge is built. I do not need any lectures from this member.
Champlain Bridge November 6th, 2013
Mr. Speaker, since October 5, 2011, the day we launched the process for the construction of the new bridge over the St. Lawrence, over two years ago, there have been more than 55 meetings involving officials from Transport Canada, Transports Québec, the Communauté métropolitaine de Montréal and the Agence métropolitaine de transport.
The day we announced the construction of the new bridge, we said that there would be a toll on it as part of a public-private partnership and that there would be public transit on the bridge. There are no surprises here.
Champlain Bridge November 6th, 2013
Mr. Speaker, the firm in question has been working on the bridge file for quite a while now, along with the company that was awarded the contract for the business plan. These people are hard at work.
Recently, a report from the highly reputable firm Buckland & Taylor raised additional and significant concerns about the bridge. We took this very seriously. Officials from Public Works and Government Services Canada have managed this file with Transport Canada.
While my colleague is concerned about the work involved in these things, we are concerned about his vote when the time comes to invest in this bridge.
Champlain Bridge November 6th, 2013
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to say it again: no toll, no bridge. We will continue to work to ensure that a bridge is built to meet the needs of the greater Montreal area, with the ability to pay Canadian taxpayers. We have done a great job. The business plan will be ready by the end of the year. Among other things, it will analyze 13 different architecture and engineering scenarios for the bridge construction. We are working hard and we will honour our commitments.
Infrastructure November 4th, 2013
Mr. Speaker, in the latest budget we were proud to announce the longest and most significant infrastructure program in the history of Canada.
The parameters remain to be set, but we know that the program will include the gas tax rebate and a transfer to the provinces. We have met with all the provincial and territorial representatives, and in the coming weeks or months we will have the pleasure of working with them to see this plan through.
Intergovernmental Relations October 23rd, 2013
Mr. Speaker, that question is based on false premises.
This case does not involve the Government of Canada, but rather a Canadian citizen against the Government of Quebec. This matter is before the courts. I even went into the member's region this summer and I did not hear anyone asking for a referendum. We certainly cannot blame the Canadian government for defending the laws of Canada.