Canada’s Parliament began a new session with yesterday’s Speech from the Throne. The Governor General, as the Queen’s representative in Canada, delivers the speech that outlines the government’s priorities and plans for the future.
The current Conservative government of Stephen Harper has two years left in their mandate, and this speech is widely seen as the beginning of the next federal election campaign.
Claude Dauphin was one of the people in the Senate Chamber to hear the speech yesterday. His is Mayor of the suburban Montreal community of Lachine, and the head of the Canadian Federation of Municipalities.
The CFM represents 2,000 town and cities across the country. The organization began advocating 75 years ago. Many of the issues are crucial to the health and safety of Canadians, 90 per cant of whom now live in cities and towns.
Affordable housing, water and transportation infrastructure, and the safety of our railways are the major issues people are talking about. The Champlain Bridge, a 4 kilometre span connecting Montreal to the south shore of the St. Lawrence River, got a special mention. The 51 year-old bridge, the most travelled in Canada, must be replaced.
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