David Krutko

Thank you. Mr. Minister, for the record, could you introduce your witness?

I would like to call Committee of the Whole back to order. Prior to the break, we agreed to carry on with the capital estimates for Public Works and Services. With that, I would like to ask the Minister of Finance if he would like to bring in any witnesses. Mr. Miltenberger.

With that, we’ll turn to the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs. Mr. Minister, are you going to be bringing in any witnesses?

Is committee agreed?

Agreed. With that, I’d like to thank the Minister and thank the witnesses. What is the wish of the committee? Mr. Bromley.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to formally invite the Minister to travel with myself to Aklavik, hopefully after the adjournment of this House, and deal with this problem, because I believe we have to deal with it this winter. We can’t wait for another flood next spring. It has to be put on the Minister’s priority list, because we are talking about the safety and the security of the community -- and erosion is a real threat to that community -- so we can avoid whatever, if that’s possible. I’d like to formally invite him to Aklavik after the adjournment of the House. With that, I’d like to...

My final question is, can we get a commitment from the Minister of Finance that basically there will be some coordination with the Department of Transportation to look at the whole area of shoreline erosion and try to access some of those research dollars that they have so that you can try to find a way to resolve this issue by some method so we can avoid the melting permafrost and the effects we’re seeing on communities and public infrastructure?

Agreed. Okay, you can return back to department summary, page 5-2. Department of Public Works and Services, department summary, infrastructure investment summary, total infrastructure investment summary, $27.260 million.

Mr. Speaker, this is a major fiscal undertaking by a community. There’s no way the community, with the resources they get through gas tax and whatnot, are going to have to deal with this problem. We’re talking millions of dollars here.

Mr. Speaker, under the Building Canada Fund in regard to infrastructure planning, there’s money available for research and development for climate change. I’d like to ask the Minister, have you considered looking at accessing some of these federal dollars through the Building Canada Fund for dealing with shore erosion in communities that are affected by climate...

Again, just on that point from the deputy minister, I think the argument of permafrost and the effects we’re seeing in the community of Aklavik in regard to the shore erosion. Again, we have other communities such as Tuk, we’re seeing that in regard to having the possibility of moving public infrastructure, because of the effects we’re seeing in regard to shore erosion regardless if it’s in the ocean or on a river where a community is next to a river system. So I’d just like to ask if there is any way that this government could make a provision that a certain amount of those dollars will be...