Transport committee  I think multiple factors are at play. One is the way that Infrastructure Canada disburses funds. They disburse funds differently, depending on which projects are being undertaken. In some instances, I believe they pay at the advancement of the work. For others, a significant portion of the projects is paid only when they get a bill, and sometimes municipalities and provinces send a bill very late in the process.

Transport committee  No, we haven't done that analysis by region. My comments about labour shortages were more related to our work on the overall economy. We haven't done an analysis of the impact of labour shortages on infrastructure projects in the regions.

Transport committee  There are so many programs under the investing in Canada plan and the infrastructure plan. I have a list here on a bigger than legal-sized piece of paper, so I'm sure there is at least one program. Not being an infrastructure specialist myself, I'll ask my colleagues whether they have ideas as to which specific program such a project could be funded under.

Transport committee  They could probably talk to their excellent member of Parliament—

Transport committee  —but that's not something that's very helpful to you. They could certainly get in touch with officials from Infrastructure Canada. They have a very good grasp of all of the programs under the department's purview. There's an existing program in this list for water and waste-water infrastructure, pre-2016.

Transport committee  Yes, with great pleasure.

Transport committee  I think the government can assist municipalities and provincial governments in developing capacity, and that relates to an answer I gave Madame Sansoucy. There's a level of assistance that could be provided in developing capacity at the provincial and municipal levels. I think there could be better planning at the federal level.

Transport committee  No, it wouldn't change my answer.

Transport committee  We don't monitor whether provinces are following the rules in the agreements that Infrastructure Canada establishes with them. It is more the role of Infrastructure Canada to ensure that provinces and municipalities abide by the terms of the agreements that the federal government has signed with provinces and municipalities.

Transport committee  Are you referring to Budget 2017 investments or all investments? With regard to modelling, we have measures that let us determine the impact of the suite of infrastructure programs. I do not believe that our model is suitable for each individual program because some are quite large and others much smaller.

Transport committee  There are several concrete examples of how investments contribute to economic growth. First, there are the direct effects, which I mentioned in my opening remarks. For example, the construction or acquisition of infrastructure generates employment and economic activity. There is another aspect, which is more difficult to measure and which is identified more in the long term: infrastructure investments facilitate economic activity.

Transport committee  I do not know if it would speed things up significantly, but this contribution would definitely make things easier for municipalities. In fact, I believe that this would actually help the process because municipalities would have to pay less out of their own coffers. If the federal government covers a larger portion of infrastructure expenditures, municipalities will certainly be more likely to fund a smaller portion of the projects.

Transport committee  It cannot be denied that such complex measures as accountability, which are imposed on municipalities, are completely justified, in my view. They are asked to submit detailed information for a project to be approved and this creates a far greater burden for small municipalities.

Transport committee  Would that be $20 billion?

Transport committee  Yes, and that multiplier effect is relatively small because the economy is running at or slightly above capacity. There's no slack in the economy for these investments to pick up, so the multiplier effect in these instances is quite small.