Premiers repeat call on Ottawa to invest in strategic, trade infrastructure

Canada’s provincial and territorial leaders have asked Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to address the need for renewed investment in infrastructure, noting that trade corridors require development.

“On behalf of Canada’s Premiers, I am writing to reiterate our priorities on infrastructure funding and policy,” Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston wrote in a March 25 letter to the Prime Minister. Houston is Chair of the Premiers’ Council of the Federation.

In July, 2023, the Council at its meeting in Winnipeg issued a joint communique, calling on Trudeau to hold a First Minister’s meeting to address competitiveness and strategic infrastructure.

The communique endorsed the principles of the Canada Trade Infrastructure Plan proposed by a group of leading national business organizations, including the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters, the Canada West Foundation, the Canadian Construction Association and the Western Canada Roadbuilders & Heavy Construction Association.

“Unfortunately, a First Ministers Meeting has not been convened, despite repeated requests from Premiers to discuss the linked priorities of competitiveness and strategic infrastructure,” the letter notes.

The premiers are seeking a commitment from Ottawa to invest in funding programs that are “coordinated, adaptable and flexible” to meet the specific needs of each jurisdiction.

The letter sets out guiding principles for new approaches to investment, including that they:

• ensure enough flexibility in federal funding that flows through (provinces and territories), so that (they) are able to achieve a state of good repair by balancing investment priorities between the restoration, repair, and maintenance of existing infrastructure and future growth projects, including any new investments in housing
• work with (provinces and territories) to support the development of trade corridors and strategic trade-enabling infrastructure
• immediately address the unacceptable gaps in the level of infrastructure available in Arctic and northern regions.

You can read the letter here.