Infrastructure  Mr. Speaker, I would like to tell the hon. member that he is absolutely wrong. The bank will shift the risk to the private sector appropriate to the investment that it makes. Every deal will be structured in the public interest. We want to make sure the public interest is protected.

Infrastructure  Mr. Speaker, we are engaging through our partners. One thing we have learned is that for the last decade the Conservative government underfunded infrastructure. We have a huge infrastructure deficit in our Canadian communities. We are making historic investments of $186 billion over the next decade.

Infrastructure  Mr. Speaker, for the entire last year, we engaged with a wide range of stakeholders, municipalities, provinces, territories, labour unions, trade councils, the IMF, the World Bank, private investors, and our own pension funds, which invest in other countries. We want to make sure they invest here, in our own country, to create jobs here for the middle class, to create prosperity here in Canada, to make sure that we build infrastructure our communities need.

Infrastructure  Mr. Speaker, Canadian pension funds like the Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board, the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement Fund, the Caisse de dépôt, the Alberta Investment Management Corporation are credible organizations that invest in places like Latin America and Australia.

Government Appointments  Mr. Speaker, the infrastructure bank is an important part of our ambitious plan to build and rebuild Canadian community infrastructure. We are investing more than $186 billion to support our municipal sector, our provincial and territorial sectors, and to build the infrastructure they need.

Infrastructure  Mr. Speaker, the small cities challenge will encourage cities to adopt new and innovative approaches to city building and improve the quality of life for residents through the implementation of clean, digitally connected technologies, including green buildings, smart roads and energy systems.

Infrastructure  Mr. Speaker, let me quote the Canadian Council for Public-Private Partnerships on the bank: “The Council is optimistic that the bank will play a significant role in attracting more private capital while growing the pipeline of P3 projects across Canada.” Our goal is to build more infrastructure that Canadian communities need.

Infrastructure  Mr. Speaker, for the last two weeks, members of the opposition have been criticizing us for being too close to private capital. Now they are saying that we would allow oversight. We have created the right balance that will allow us to mobilize private capital and build more infrastructure while at same time being accountable to Parliament and making sure the government is there to protect the public interest and ensure projects being built are serving the public interest.

Infrastructure  Mr. Speaker, we will always make sure that we protect the public interest, that we protect Canadian taxpayers' interest. Our goal is to mobilize private capital so that we can build more infrastructure that our Canadian communities deserve, the infrastructure that the Harper government denied for a decade.

Infrastructure  Mr. Speaker, the vast majority of infrastructure that our government supports building is owned by the provincial, municipal, and territorial sectors. Our goal is to make sure that we are leveraging private capital to build more of the infrastructure that our Canadian communities need.

Infrastructure  Mr. Speaker, we have done an extensive amount of consultation over the last year, engaging with municipalities, provinces, the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, labour organizations, trade councils, the IMF, the World Bank, and with all sorts of stakeholders that are interested in infrastructure.

Infrastructure  Mr. Speaker, we are very proud that the infrastructure bank will actually report to this House, through Parliament, through the regular operational plans that will be tabled. The members can see that, as well as the extensive consultation that we have done with our stakeholders and our partners, who are in broad support of our infrastructure plan.

Infrastructure  Mr. Speaker, under the previous government, our communities suffered greatly because the infrastructure they need—

Infrastructure  Mr. Speaker, let me tell the House what the CEO of the Canadian Council for Public-Private Partnerships has to say about the infrastructure bank: “The Council is optimistic that the bank will play a significant role in attracting more private capital while growing the pipeline of P3 projects across Canada.”

Infrastructure  Mr. Speaker, Canadian pension funds like CPPIB, OMERS, teachers, IMCO, or the Caisse de dépôt invest billions of dollars helping to build infrastructure in other countries. They have been doing that for Australia and they will do it for Latin America. What is wrong if our own pension plans invest in our own infrastructure to create jobs in our own communities to help grow our own middle class so that people have opportunities?