Discussion · Government Orders
Jean-Denis Garon Bloc Québécois
“The government misled people about the Alto train project. It will cost far more than they said, and it will take money away from local transit that Quebeckers need. The government should admit that we were right about this from the start.”
“Mr. Speaker, the Quebec government’s position will become clearer. I think we can see where it is heading on this issue. I think we are seeing a consensus emerge. One thing is certain: The government has been spreading disinformation on this matter from the start. We have the Parliamentary Budget Officer’s assessment. We are being told that the costs provided were off by at least 30%, and we do not even have the analysis of the request yet. We do not know about passenger-kilometre subsidies, but we do know that the project will not finance itself. When it reaches $140 billion, $150 billion, $160 billion or $170 billion, knowing that infrastructure budgets are interconnected, who is going to pay for that? It will be Quebeckers, when it comes to paratransit, public transit and east-west mobility in the Laurentians, which we need in the Laurentians. When budgets exceed that amount, it does not show up anywhere. We have been sounding the alarm from the very beginning. I am saying that we were right too soon. Every new fact that comes to light—independent facts from people who are not paid by Alto to invent studies and facts—proves that we were right. I think the government should recognize that and give us more credibility.”
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Mr. Speaker, the Quebec government’s position will become clearer. I think we can see where it is heading on this issue. I think we are seeing a consensus emerge. One thing is certain: The government has been spreading disinformation on this matter from the start. We have the Parliamentary Budget Officer’s assessment. We are being told that the costs provided were off by at least 30%, and we do not even have the analysis of the request yet. We do not know about passenger-kilometre subsidies, but we do know that the project will not finance itself. When it reaches $140 billion, $150 billion, $160 billion or $170 billion, knowing that infrastructure budgets are interconnected, who is going to pay for that? It will be Quebeckers, when it comes to paratransit, public transit and east-west mobility in the Laurentians, which we need in the Laurentians. When budgets exceed that amount, it does not show up anywhere. We have been sounding the alarm from the very beginning. I am saying that we were right too soon. Every new fact that comes to light—independent facts from people who are not paid by Alto to invent studies and facts—proves that we were right. I think the government should recognize that and give us more credibility.