Editor's note: This article originally appeared on Parliament Today, a Village Media newsletter devoted exclusively to covering federal politics.
Prime Minister Mark Carney teased that Canada will see “major new ports” built under his watch, but added those decisions will be guided “first and foremost” by talks between Ottawa and the premiers.
Carney held a roundtable with executives from the energy sector in Calgary on Sunday, telling reporters that “partnerships” was the theme for the talks, which also included Energy Minister Tim Hodgson.
It comes after several executives pitched policies, including dropping the emissions cap, in a letter penned to the PM last month. Carney thanked them for their correspondence and said it was “best” to meet in person, rather than pursue an “exchange of letters given the importance of the issues.”
The comments teed up a hotly anticipated meeting between Carney and premiers in Saskatoon on Monday.
Expectations are high for this gathering, with the PM saying he wants to name specific projects Ottawa will fast-track based on suggestions from the provinces. But the PM admitted last week there could be “competition” between projects that premiers bring forward, and Ottawa is already facing calls from the Assembly of First Nations to keep Indigenous community infrastructure in mind as it embarks on the process.
On Friday, the PM delivered a speech to the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) during its annual conference in Ottawa, which was peppered with familiar priorities concerning housing and getting large projects off the ground.
Carney was introduced by Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe, who thanked the PM for being “very interested in the concerns of municipal leaders.” Sutcliffe also touted him as a local representative, given that Carney secured the Nepean seat in the election.
But FCM President Rebecca Bligh decried the lack of municipal representation at the Saskatoon meeting so far, arguing cities want to be “in lockstep” with other levels of government on progress to spur project development.
“What we've had an experience of, is that we can work together to design programs that we can be in proactive conversations around how they're being shaped so all municipalities, rural or urban and everyone in between can be good partners in terms of the rapid deployment of what you're looking to achieve in your ambitious housing goals,” Bligh told the PM.
Bligh said municipalities are on the "front lines" of dealing with several crises, such as homelessness, mental health and public safety, meaning they deserve a "structured, collaborative, mature and sincere conversation about how to reform our fiscal tools” to support the government’s agenda.
While Bligh did not reference specific tools, she said many of them are outdated in cases where cities are grappling with “modern-day challenges that aren't going to go away.”
Carney, who promised to be a “reliable partner” to cities and help make them “whole through federal investments in water, power lines and wastewater,” did not say what specific role cities would play during or after the Monday gathering.
However, he emphasized the importance of predictability in achieving nation-building projects.
“It can’t be, ‘stop, start,’ it can't be short-term projects …contingencies and alignment are important, but they can't be arbitrary and unpredictable. That's crucial,” the PM explained.
“What we look at on trade infrastructure is linking municipalities large and small into the ports, that is trade infrastructure, as well as building out ports or building new ports. There will be some major new ports that are built, new trade and energy corridors that will be built, again it's subject to the agreements there.”
When it comes to the fiscal planning of these projects, he said “those decisions are bigger sets of decisions which necessarily involve the provinces first and foremost.”
While Ottawa can facilitate talks between cities and provinces, he argued the country cannot afford for politicians to “wait for those discussions,” and that’s why Ottawa is promising to invest in cities through housing programs.
The comments came after a speech that vowed to "double down” on existing programs like the Housing Accelerator Fund, with the PM also trumpeting efforts to get Ottawa back into the homebuilding business with $25 billion to spur the development of prefabricated homes.
Quick action?
According to the Globe and Mail, Carney is poised to present premiers with legislation on speeding up the approval of project proposals while in Saskatoon, slashing that timeline to two years. The bill could be tabled in short order, given the PM has said he wants to see it passed by July 1.
CPC Leader Pierre Poilievre did not say how his team will vote, though his party generally backs efforts to speed up project approvals.
“We’ve got to see it first. There’s often a difference between what Liberals advertise and what they do,” Poilievre said Friday, telling Hill reporters Ottawa should couple the legislation with moves like dropping the oil and gas emissions cap.
“The energy production cap means that the government of Canada might not allow enough production to fill future pipelines, which reduces the likelihood that a pipeline builder will come along and build it,” he added.
Poilievre said that while shortlisting projects after the Saskatoon meeting is “better than nothing,” the ultimate solution is repealing Liberal laws he’s long argued are anti-development.
Meanwhile, Quebec Premier François Legault says he has a few ideas for “big economic projects” that could benefit from an infusion of federal cash, including a new power line from Newfoundland and Labrador to his province.
When asked about that proposal, Canadian Culture Minister Steven Guilbeault, who is also Carney’s Quebec lieutenant, said it is up to premiers to hash out what the “best possible projects” are with the PM.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford has already made his wish list public, noting it includes the Ring of Fire, as well as building an expressway tunnel under Highway 401, nuclear energy generation, a new James Bay deepsea port, and an expansion of passenger rail.
