- Member of Parliament
- Liberal
- Mississauga Centre
- Ontario
- Voting Attendance: 64%
- Expenses Last Quarter: $149,480.76
- Government Page
Mr. Speaker, I often remind ports, including the Port of Vancouver, that they are public institutions. They are there to serve the public and they are there to ensure that they pay attention to their constituents and their stakeholders.
This bill would do several things, but let me address a couple of points the bill proposes that could help with the matter that my hon. colleague has raised.
First, the bill would require ports to establish advisory groups to ensure that local stakeholders are consulted formally and efficiently, instead of the ad hoc, insufficient ways that may have happened in the past. Second, the bill proposes that ports could create inland terminals. They would no longer have to build all their infrastructure on the coastline and would be able to look for other options.
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Mr. Speaker, let me make this point: I am enthusiastic about this bill, not because it is my baby, but because it would improve the lives of Canadians.
It would get things done; it would improve the congestion at ports; it would improve accountability and transparency; and it would address the climate issue. To my hon. colleague's point, I certainly have had a discussion with him and other colleagues about whether there is a way for this, because some of the provisions of this bill are intended to add accountability and transparency to ensure the ports are doing their job in consultation with local communities. However, I accept the fact that there are different circumstances for smaller ports, and we need to find a way to ensure that we uphold the principle but do not overburden these smaller ports. I am willing to work with my hon. colleague and other members of Parliament to ensure we find that balance.
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Mr. Speaker, I agree with my colleague. Those who work in the labour sector and represent workers have a unique perspective that can benefit the operations of our institutions, including ports. I want to express to my colleague my willingness and our government's willingness to work with him on advancing this principle he talked about. I am looking forward to sending this bill to committee, where we will get a chance to have a fulsome debate and look for opportunities to improve it, to ensure we address the point he is raising.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague for bringing this issue back into focus.
Canadians know that over the last couple of years, because of COVID, extreme weather events, labour shortages and the illegal war in Ukraine, we have seen tremendous disruption in our supply chain. Our government established a supply chain task force last year, and it came back with a solid number of recommendations, 21 to be exact. Some of them were focused on port congestion. This bill would enhance the ability for ports to manage and ease congestion. In fact, it would enable ports to create inland terminals. Ports were not previously encouraged to do so. We are now empowering ports to manage vessel traffic in their jurisdictions.
Those who live on the west coast know about the issue of traffic jams along the west coast, where for a long time no one has had the responsibility of managing traffic. This bill would create that ability. It would also enhance rail safety. This is an important bill for the safety of Canadians and for the resilience of our supply chain.
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- Mar/10/23 10:53:03 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I have to express my disappointment with my colleague's take on the bill.
I would say that he has said a couple of contradictory things. On the one hand, he said that the ports need to have a national lens. On the other, he opposes introducing representatives of the prairie provinces to the boards of the ports.
On the one hand, he said that the ports need to be at arm's length from the government, which I agree with. However, on the other, his own leader is criticizing the government for policies that, by the way, the ports enacted under the Harper government.
Therefore, he has made several contradictory statements.
I would ask my colleague this: Will he really miss out on this opportunity for us to work together on strengthening the governance of ports? I welcome his ideas for amendments, but it would be prudent to send this bill to committee so that we, as members of Parliament, can work together on advancing the goal that we all agree on, which is making sure that our ports are more efficient and resilient.
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- Mar/10/23 10:32:54 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I know my hon. colleague is trying to personalize his question, but let me be very clear. Ports are public institutions. They are there to serve Canadians and the Canadian economy. It is really important that the port mandate is in line with government's expectations and commitments. Therefore, it is important that the board of directors is aligned with government's objectives.
Yes, we need to be careful and sensitive about this and make sure that the ports have the independence they need, but, at the same time, make sure that they maintain their responsibility to the public.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his advocacy.
Ports are important to keeping our supply chain moving, and I am happy to share with the House that yesterday I announced a nearly $75-million investment to increase capacity and reduce congestion at the port of Prince Rupert. Also, this morning, we tabled a new bill entitled “strengthening the port system and railway safety in Canada act”. This bill would create a stronger, more competitive supply chain.
Our government is taking action to ease pressure on our supply chain, which is great news for Canadians and Canadian businesses.
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- Nov/4/22 12:08:41 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I want to assure my colleague and all Canadians that the issue of vessel traffic management on the gulf coast is very important to me and to our government. A few weeks ago, I was in Vancouver where I met with the port authority and stakeholders, including shippers and agriculture producers. Global and domestic supply issues are causing a complicated matter at the port.
Soon, we will be tabling a bill in the House of Commons to modernize how we govern our ports. We have also announced an investment to digitize our supply chains to help the flow of goods and make them more efficient. Our government is acting. This will also relieve pressure on inflation.
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- Jun/20/22 2:48:08 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to stress how urgent the situation is and that our government is working toward easing the delays at our airports. We have added more than 900 CATSA workers over the last few weeks. We have increased the number of CBSA agents. We have adjusted many of our measures, in collaboration with airports and airlines, to ease airport delays. We are working with workers, who have been working very hard over the last weeks, to address this issue. There is a lot of work to be done, but we are committed to it.
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- Jun/6/22 2:53:42 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, my hon. colleague is right about one thing: We are seeing delays at airports across the entire world. We are seeing an increased demand and appetite for people who want to travel, and the supply is trying to catch up. However, we are not resting until we fix these delays. We have increased resources at CATSA, CBSA and airports. We are working with airports, airlines and all stakeholders and will do everything we can to ensure that travellers have a smooth experience.
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- Jun/3/22 11:49:40 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, as we have committed to Canadians from the beginning of the pandemic, everything we do is based on our desire to protect the health and safety of Canadians. We have been guided by the advice we received from our experts. With respect to our travel measures, we have been lifting some of them and adjusting others, and we will continuously work with our experts.
Let me be clear. We are doing everything we can to address delays at airports. We are seeing similar delays around the world—
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- May/30/22 2:37:42 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I know how frustrating delays at airports have been for Canadians and travellers. It is something that we are taking very seriously. We are witnessing similar phenomena across the world. Airports all over the world are experiencing this, but we are taking action. We hired over 400 CATSA employees. We have convened CBSA, CATSA, airports and airlines to work together on bottlenecks to address this. We are investing in resources. We are addressing procedures. We want to make sure that every Canadian is able to travel safely and efficiently.
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- May/10/22 2:45:53 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the good news is that more Canadians want to travel, want to go on trips and want to visit family, and we are seeing large volumes at airports. We are working on these delays.
Yesterday I met with the CEO of CATSA. We struck a working group a few weeks ago to address these issues and work quickly to address the surge in demand.
We are seeing surges across the entire economy. Our government is responsive. We are working proactively to address these issues as quickly as possible.
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- May/6/22 11:41:26 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, as a traveller myself, and I know many of my colleagues here travel regularly, we are experiencing long lines and delays at airports—
Some hon. members: Oh, oh!
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