Hon. Larry W. Campbell:

Honourable senators, last week the Conservative government released theirbudget. Once again, the government is showing that it does not understand theissues facing Canadian cities and the millions of Canadians who make their livesthere. Canada's cities have been calling for a long-term solution to correct theinfrastructure deficit that hobbles their progress and prevents them frombecoming world-class economic and cultural centres that draw the best and thebrightest. Instead, the government has offered short-term, band-aidsolutions.

The previous Liberal government developed the federal gas tax transfer inorder to provide a long-term, predictable funding source for municipalities. Theleader of the Liberal Party has committed to making this transfer permanent.This government has only delivered a four-year extension to this transfer. Thatis simply not good enough for our cities.

Further, the government has continued its re-branding exercise by combiningthe Liberal implemented strategic rural-municipal and border infrastructurefunds into the renamed "Building Canada Fund." This fund is spread over sevenyears, contains no new ideas and does not meet the required long-term fundingthat cities need.

Honourable senators, this budget gravely fails in the area of public transit.While transit projects are eligible under the gas tax transfer and the so-calledBuilding Canada Fund, transit projects would be in competition for these fundswith all other municipal infrastructure projects. A national transit strategyhas been called for by both the Federation of Canadian Municipalities' big citymayors' caucus and the Canadian Urban Transit Association. The big city mayorshave called for a specific and annual $2 billion per year investment in transit,which they feel should be:

Integrated with a predictable, permanent plan for transit that includes taxmeasures, research, a link to land use and transportation planning . . . as wellas setting accountable targets against which to measure progress and value formoney.

Instead of a comprehensive transit strategy, this Conservative government hasprovided a tax credit on bus passes which, while nice, will do nothing toincrease ridership, improve service, assist in cleaner air and in loweringgreenhouse gas emissions or provide the type of modern public transit our citiesrequire to be competitive.

Lastly, this budget ignored the issue of affordable housing and homelessness.The government's refusal to address this issue does not mean the problem will goaway. By reducing this issue to an afterthought, lumped into a $3.3 billion fundfor a variety of social issues, this government has essentially abandoned thehomeless, leaving cities on the hook for dealing with the problem yet again.

The budget fails Canadian cities in several other areas, ranging fromenvironment to policing, but most disturbing is the obvious lack of commitmentto exercise smart government by partnering with the cities, along with theprovinces, to solve many issues that are truly of national import.

Honourable senators, cities are where the majority of Canadian citizens live.That number is growing yearly, making Canada's cities world class magnets forthe best and the brightest. Centres able to maximize their economic potentialand provide a superior quality of life for their citizens require nationalleadership and a vision of what this country can be. This budget, and indeedthis government, fall short and fail our cities.

Recent Statements from Liberal Senators