So, what are you going to tell the prime minister? He’s coming to see you. You just need to contact your Liberal M.P. to get an invitation. He is not coming to our riding. We lost to the Conservatives by 86 votes.
And please do not ask the PM if it is cold enough for him. He is a Canadian. He knows about our winters. Besides, he just got back after he and the family spent some warm time at the Bahamian island of the Aga Khan.
But now it is back to reality and the grind and the PM wants to know what is on your mind. The poor guy has so many newbies in his cabinet that they are not making as much progress as he would like. He wants you to help kick-start them with some good ideas.
And believe it or not, he wants to spend money. Lots of it. He not only promised us a deficit of 180 billion dollars but there is more if you need it. His finance minister Bill Morneau wants us to buy into an idea where we get investors around the world to pay for our infrastructure needs. All these investors with deep pockets have to do is pay for it and they get a nice revenue stream once the idea starts to make money.
One idea is that now—if ever—is the time for Canada to get into the world-wide craze for high-speed rail lines. What we are talking about is getting from Toronto Union Station to Montreal Central Station in one and a half hours. That is far faster than by Air Canada, is more comfortable and does not pollute.
If you like, you can impress Mr. Trudeau by pointing out that we are just about the last major country in the world to join this parade. Tell him that in Uzbekistan, you can get from Tashkent to Samarkand (about the same distance as Montreal to Toronto) by a 250 km/h train.
The beauty of getting people to invest in trains and other forms of transit is that there is revenue flow. It means the investor can be assured of a flow of profit from the investment. Whether the investor is Canadian or European—where there are now hundreds of high-speed trains criss-crossing the continent (and England)—is not as important as our need in Canada to move people and goods efficiently and without pollution.
But that is our hobby horse. It is absolutely beyond us why there is so little progress in this field in Canada—a country that was created by railroads. You might have another idea that could be as good. Go for it. Justin Trudeau has come to listen.
-30-
Copyright 2017 © Peter Lowry
Complaints, comments, criticisms and compliments can be sent to [email protected]