Finance committee  I honestly had never heard anything about that until today. It's the first time I've been told about something as important as that. And yet, there are quite a few boat owners in my region.

Finance committee  I'm going to ask Mr. Boulet to give more precise figures. I would nevertheless like to give a clear idea of what constitutes a rural community. When the Federation of Canadian Municipalities talks about rural communities, it is talking about municipalities whose population is un

Finance committee  My view is that so far, the success rate for municipalities of 5,000 or fewer residents has not been very high. Mr. Boulet, do you have any more accurate numbers?

Finance committee  Thank you for the question, Mr. Ste-Marie. I'd like to begin by talking to you about the fuel tax, which comes up often. We were told several times that this tax would be used more widely, for things like fire stations and city halls. But it should, at the very least, include da

Finance committee  I love your question, because I am one of those people who, in Quebec, went to battle over this. Airbnb is frequently active in our communities, and in particular at our vacation destinations. So people are buying big houses not to live there, but to rent them out. That raises th

Finance committee  I'll make a start on answering this and will then give the floor to Mr. Goulet. Governments often bounce the problem back to the municipalities, and tell them that the process is too slow. However, what the municipalities repeatedly ask for is predictability. The federal govern

Finance committee  We represent the regions, and I can say that the situation is less common in rural communities. You are absolutely right, but it's more of an issue in big cities. When companies look for buildings to buy up in order to transform the units into condominiums, and then raise prices

Finance committee  I'll let Mr. Boulet answer your question.

Finance committee  I'd obviously like to go back to the cellular coverage issue because I think it will be our next major battle. People think the cellular network is accessible throughout Quebec, but that's false. There are holes in cellular coverage in many places, even near major centres. They d

Finance committee  I'll let my colleague Mr. Boulet answer that question.

Finance committee  I'll give you my answer, and my colleague may then add to it. Yes, there's a land access issue, but unemployment also causes problems. We're discussing housing, but many businesses are looking for employees, especially in the regions. They're looking for them everywhere so they

Finance committee  Good morning, everyone. I am very proud to be here today to discuss the federal budget with you. My name is Jacques Demers, and I am the mayor of Sainte-Catherine-de-Hatley, the prefect of the Regional County Municipality, or RCM, of Memphrémagog and president of the Fédérati

Transport committee  I feel that predictability is needed whatever the size of the municipality, but for small municipalities in particular. That is why I would find it worthwhile to do a study to assess the state of our infrastructures. A number of municipalities have already done so but I am aware

Transport committee  You are totally right. It is one of the best investments that the government could make. I don't know if people realize how important it is. It is not actually a recurring investment. By investing in this way, you get the fibre into homes and you provide each one with an Interne

Transport committee  I have two answers for you. First, I would say “great job”. We really need a management plan, which I still say must be a rotational plan. Our highway infrastructures are in particular need of maintenance. We know that, after 10 or 12 years, the pavement must be changed and the