Latest / Kvetch & Release / MP Brian Masse demands Liberals keep Canadians safe on Ambassador Bridge from hazardous materials

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MP Brian Masse demands Liberals keep Canadians safe on Ambassador Bridge from hazardous materials · Kvetch & Release

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: You know, we have thousands of vehicles that go across
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  Speaker 1: the Ambassador Bridge every single day. It is a unique
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  Speaker 1: aspect of our skyline, though not to be the only
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  Speaker 1: unique aspect of our skyline. As the Gordy Howe International
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  Speaker 1: Bridge does complete, it does continue to complete its construction.
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  Speaker 1: But there are still concerns right now about the Ambassador Bridge,
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  Speaker 1: and Windsor West Member of Parliament Brian Massey has been
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  Speaker 1: raising them. He's calling on Ottawa to disclose all reports
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  Speaker 1: and studies on the safety and security of our community
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  Speaker 1: before allowing further classes of hazardous materials to travel across
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  Speaker 1: the Ambassador Bridge following approval by the State of Michigan's
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  Speaker 1: Department of Transportation. Joining me right now is MP Brian Massey.
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  Speaker 2: How you doing good things? How are you doing really well?
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  Speaker 1: Brian? So what is this situation here? What is it
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  Speaker 1: that Michigan's dot Department of Transportation has approved, so.
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  Speaker 2: They're allowing additional classifications and has this materials Often these
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  Speaker 2: are elements that are related to a battery and they
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  Speaker 2: haven't ironically actually combustible engine batteries and go across as well,
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  Speaker 2: and they haven't ever at any rate. We're looking at
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  Speaker 2: an additional ten thousand minimum. Has those material trucks that
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  Speaker 2: will go over the Ambassador Bridge, many of them will
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  Speaker 2: require also escorts to do so. So I'm opposing this
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  Speaker 2: because it historically hasn't been capable to deal with the
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  Speaker 2: containment case of a leak. Even just this past week,
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  Speaker 2: the Blue Water Bridge, which is capable of containing the
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  Speaker 2: leaks and spills with infrastructure on the bridge built for
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  Speaker 2: that alone, was even closed an additional seven hours because
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  Speaker 2: of leakage, not even just an accident. So what I'm
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  Speaker 2: saying is that why would we change this now when
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  Speaker 2: the gordyhow Bridge is going to be fully operational and
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  Speaker 2: fully capable of doing this the highest standards possible versus
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  Speaker 2: that of the Ambassador Bridge where it doesn't have those standards,
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  Speaker 2: and it will require I guess, a compromise in terms
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  Speaker 2: of the way that it's actually going to manage spills
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  Speaker 2: and so forth, and also it's going to complicate other
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  Speaker 2: traffic on the bridge.
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  Speaker 1: Where would be better places for this to travel across.
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  Speaker 2: Just continue what we're doing now, going to the Bluewater Bridge.
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  Speaker 2: Sadly I thought to keep the and we didn't win
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  Speaker 2: to keep the ferry service in operation, but that was
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  Speaker 2: closed the Gordi Hiw International Bridge, who will be fully
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  Speaker 2: capable of carrying all those elements and it will be
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  Speaker 2: built also in the customs end of it to separate
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  Speaker 2: the traffic for those goods and services, and so that's
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  Speaker 2: what's going to be the future. That drove the business
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  Speaker 2: to move and shift in the short term, and the
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  Speaker 2: ferry Service lost a lot of customers coming up to
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  Speaker 2: the Gordy opening up, and so we should have actually
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  Speaker 2: kept that in operation, and that was requested by the
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  Speaker 2: Ferry Service and it wasn't. So what we need to
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  Speaker 2: do now is just live with the consequence, and that's
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  Speaker 2: go to Blue Water and cross safely and do it
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  Speaker 2: the proper way, and the short term and the long
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  Speaker 2: term go across the Gordy and don't open this up.
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  Speaker 2: For the unprecedented future, we will have it again. Tens
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  Speaker 2: of thousands of more trucks on the Ambassador Bridge. And
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  Speaker 2: then lastly they have to do with inspection and also
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  Speaker 2: customs sometimes off site down here in Church Road, so
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  Speaker 2: it's going to put some of these trucks into city streets.
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  Speaker 1: It does seem pretty odd to be doing this, so
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  Speaker 1: shy of the Gordy Howe Bridge opening up and being
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  Speaker 1: able to deal with this. I remember not too long ago.
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  Speaker 1: I'm sure you do as well, Brian, the Ambassador Bridge
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  Speaker 1: blockade and how much hardship it caused for our local economy,
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  Speaker 1: the auto industry with the border shut down when it
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  Speaker 1: was you know, and indefinitely in that case, and it did,
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  Speaker 1: of course reopen. But I wonder if there was a
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  Speaker 1: hazardous materials leakage that would shut everything down and it
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  Speaker 1: would really impact our economy.
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  Speaker 2: It definitely will if there is a leakage, and you're
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  Speaker 2: absolutely correct, and that's why we said that he's stoat
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  Speaker 2: only just in terms of the environment, but also the economy.
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  Speaker 2: It doesn't make any sense to have, you know, a
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  Speaker 2: ninety year plus bridge that wasn't built for it having
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  Speaker 2: these types of substances cross and we we have alternatives saying,
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  Speaker 2: that's just unbelievable that you know, this miss Department of
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  Speaker 2: Michigan and you know has approved it. But they did
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  Speaker 2: so if you look at their study after even reviewing
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  Speaker 2: their entire areas. And so I've called for the release
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  Speaker 2: of all provincial and federal studies and they have not
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  Speaker 2: yet done that. There's only one reference we can find
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  Speaker 2: that was done. So quite frankly, it's quite likely that
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  Speaker 2: the doug Ford government and the Trueau government have not
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  Speaker 2: done any full analysis of the houses, material trucks or
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  Speaker 2: where they go into the community in an assessment of that.
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  Speaker 2: The City Windsor has issued a proclamation against this. The
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  Speaker 2: council did they send it to our MPs and I
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  Speaker 2: was the only one who made submission against it into
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  Speaker 2: them dot review. And you know, it doesn't take into
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  Speaker 2: account the trucks and city streets. We're not even really
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  Speaker 2: talking about right now. We're just focusing on the bridge.
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  Speaker 2: But these are tens of thousands trucks and they are
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  Speaker 2: now going to be reintroduced into the city streets because
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  Speaker 2: we don't connect rebectly into the poor one right now,
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  Speaker 2: which is.
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  Speaker 1: Exactly what we've been, you know, working so hard to
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  Speaker 1: stop having happened over the past number of years, getting
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  Speaker 1: towards the Gordy Howe opening up. But hey, can we
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  Speaker 1: shift gears just a little bit here if you don't
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  Speaker 1: mind my automotive talk Right there, we have, of course
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  Speaker 1: NDP leader jug Meet saying ripping up the supply and
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  Speaker 1: confidence agreement with the Liberals we heard about that a
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  Speaker 1: couple days ago. Love to get your perspective as to
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  Speaker 1: where things stand now.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, so essentially, you know, we've got everything we should
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  Speaker 2: have had an agreement. There's a few minor things that
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  Speaker 2: have to be completed. But we felt with all the
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  Speaker 2: different types of decisions that are being made and not
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  Speaker 2: getting the government to act on them, it was time
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  Speaker 2: to move away from that. And the Prime Minister and
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  Speaker 2: the Liberal Party have let Canadians down not only just
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  Speaker 2: on affordability, but a few other issues. And we couldn't
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  Speaker 2: stand with the current situation because it wasn't really benefiting
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  Speaker 2: what people have sent us to out of what to do,
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  Speaker 2: and that's making life more affordable and to stand up
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  Speaker 2: for issues. And I can't think of a more better
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  Speaker 2: example than this border issue with the Ambassador Bridge, where
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  Speaker 2: we have an American billionaire and the state of Mission Michigan,
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  Speaker 2: you know, basically dictating that we'll have trucks of houses
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  Speaker 2: material and you know the windsor exisen of community and
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  Speaker 2: we're not fighting against it. So there's a series of
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  Speaker 2: repertoire of things. And so we're going to go back
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  Speaker 2: to Ottawa, will work to try to get things done.
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  Speaker 2: But at the same time they just can't count on
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  Speaker 2: the supply confidence motion anymore because those objectives for pharmacare
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  Speaker 2: dental care are a pretty much done, and that's why
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  Speaker 2: we want to actually go and get more for Canadians
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  Speaker 2: while we can.
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  Speaker 1: Is there a risk though, that this might empower the
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  Speaker 1: block to give them a bit more power and shift
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  Speaker 1: the focus away from more of the measures that you're
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  Speaker 1: looking to see.
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  Speaker 2: No, yea alutely, there's always a definite consequence to this,
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  Speaker 2: There's no doubt about it. In fact, Pierre Palev and
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  Speaker 2: the Conservatives voted with Justin Trueau many many times. They
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  Speaker 2: didn't put members in the House to do their full
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  Speaker 2: voting because they were going through their leadership issues with
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  Speaker 2: Aaron O'Toole and Andrew Sheer and so Forthe we'll forget
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  Speaker 2: about that, is that many times that the Conservatives supported
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  Speaker 2: Justin Trudeau and there was no compromise to get anything.
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  Speaker 2: We went into the supply confidence agreement to get things done,
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  Speaker 2: being the dental care, of Pharmacare, anti scab legislation and
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  Speaker 2: so forth, and those things are pretty much completed now
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  Speaker 2: and that's why we're going to stract something for the
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  Speaker 2: confidence of the government, so that Gain can actually reignite.
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  Speaker 2: So the Conservatives, for all their bluster, they could eventually
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  Speaker 2: go back to doing what they did before. In fact,
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  Speaker 2: justin Trudeau support is Stephen Harper over one hundred times
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  Speaker 2: during Harper's minority Parliament or the Block could actually do
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  Speaker 2: that as well too. So doesn't mean we're going to
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  Speaker 2: an election right away. There's lots of scenarios. Does open
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  Speaker 2: the opportunity though, for more possibilities of an election.
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  Speaker 1: Hey, well, getting closer and closer to an election is
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  Speaker 1: one of those things. Death taxes, elections, They're going to happen.
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  Speaker 1: There's not much you can do about it. One thing though,
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  Speaker 1: that did pop up. I was wondering, and I spoke
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  Speaker 1: yesterday with President of Friends of Ojibway, Mike Fisher about
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  Speaker 1: the Ojibway National Urban Park and your bill specifically, and
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  Speaker 1: if we are getting closer to an election, what are
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  Speaker 1: the risks for Ojiboy National Urban Park if an election
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  Speaker 1: is called and your bill dies on the floor. And
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  Speaker 1: I know that there had been money allocated from the
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  Speaker 1: other side through the Park's Canada process, but is there
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  Speaker 1: a risk at all of the entire Ojibway National Urban
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  Speaker 1: Park process being derailed if things don't get done before
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  Speaker 1: an election.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, first, I want want to say that Mike Fisher
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  Speaker 2: and friends of the Jibwey have done a proramal work
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  Speaker 2: and I want to thank them for everything and continue
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  Speaker 2: to work with them and to get things done. But yes,
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  Speaker 2: that was always a case though the bill C two
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  Speaker 2: four eight a jib National Earm Park was never part
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  Speaker 2: of a supply confidence motion. In fact, it was one
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  Speaker 2: of the first pieces of legislation to get out of
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  Speaker 2: the House of Commons to the Senate floor and didn't
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  Speaker 2: get a lot of movement, so we put more pressure
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  Speaker 2: on it and so that is at risk. But we're
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  Speaker 2: working really hard and I'm working with all political parties
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  Speaker 2: including the Minister's office right now to do some changes
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  Speaker 2: to the bill so it can get through the Senate
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  Speaker 2: and then from the Senate it would go to the
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  Speaker 2: House of Commons. So that risk was always there and
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  Speaker 2: has been there because again it wasn't part of the
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  Speaker 2: supply confidence but it is you know, basically susceptible to
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  Speaker 2: how long a government lasts because private members business has
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  Speaker 2: to be redone for it. So hopefully this will actually
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  Speaker 2: put more pressure to actually get it done where I
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  Speaker 2: wanted it done over a year ago. There wasn't that
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  Speaker 2: political desire at some points to get it passed. And
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  Speaker 2: perhaps this will actually speed the process up because there'll
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  Speaker 2: be more focused so we have a solution for some
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  Speaker 2: of the problems that are being presented in front of
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  Speaker 2: the bill, and we're going to actually be putting them
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  Speaker 2: forward to the Senate. We'll be doing that and then
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  Speaker 2: hoping to get it to the House. So it actually
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  Speaker 2: could even speed things up because the urgency is there regardless.
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  Speaker 2: The Gordy Howi International Bridge is opening up, and so
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  Speaker 2: we don't have time to pool around with this, and
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  Speaker 2: it's unfortunate it's taken so long, but we got to
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  Speaker 2: get it done and know Parliament will last forever. And
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  Speaker 2: at the same time, it wasn't moving because nobody was
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  Speaker 2: taking it seriously enough. And again it was a part
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  Speaker 2: of the agreement because the bill was introduced after that
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  Speaker 2: agreement was done.
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  Speaker 1: Okay, and I guess last question on the same file. Then,
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  Speaker 1: with the funding that has been provided right now in
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  Speaker 1: the current budget for the next five years that allocates
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  Speaker 1: towards creating the process, I'm presuming that all of the
• 9:42
  Speaker 1: money wasn't handed over at once, and that let's say,
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  Speaker 1: if there is a Conservative government that comes in, they
• 9:48
  Speaker 1: could cancel the following four years of funding if they wanted.
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  Speaker 2: To, absolutely, and that's always been a risk and one
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  Speaker 2: of the reasons I want legislation. In fact, if the
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  Speaker 2: government wants to right now, they could even actually do
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  Speaker 2: a ordering councilor past this. So you know, I haven't
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  Speaker 2: talked about that too much. You're the first person to
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  Speaker 2: really ask these the deep questions on this issue. And
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  Speaker 2: the reality is that this could actually move through as
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  Speaker 2: a legisation if they wanted at some point as well too,
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  Speaker 2: So there's a variety of things that can take place
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  Speaker 2: out of there to get it done. But there is
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  Speaker 2: no doubt that if it doesn't have legislation, then it's
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  Speaker 2: susceptible to other governments and what they decide. That's always
• 10:24
  Speaker 2: going to be the case no matter what other governments
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  Speaker 2: to come in and cut funding for programs and services.
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  Speaker 2: That's our fear over the Conservatives, because they haven't committed
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  Speaker 2: to pharmacare they haven't committed to dental care. They'm committed
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  Speaker 2: to a series of things, the automotive funds and so forth.
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  Speaker 2: So that is on the table for everything for a
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  Speaker 2: new government.
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  Speaker 1: It's the reason why pressure needs to be kept up
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  Speaker 1: on your elected officials for the things that people here
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  Speaker 1: at the audience that you're listening for, that you care about,
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  Speaker 1: whether it be a national urban park or any other
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  Speaker 1: things that you are striving to see or elected reps
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  Speaker 1: push forward. Brian, thank you for breaking this down for us.
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  Speaker 1: It doesn't sound like it's all doom and gloom yet,
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  Speaker 1: but people should be still out there volunteering and making
• 11:02
  Speaker 1: themselves heard because time is running shorter than it was
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  Speaker 1: a few days ago.
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  Speaker 2: Yes, and thank you very much. And I would just
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  Speaker 2: encourage that we can continue to fight for the things
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  Speaker 2: that are important person. Let's get them done now. Well
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  Speaker 2: I wait for later.
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  Speaker 1: Absolutely, thank you so much for your time.
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  Speaker 2: Thank you.
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  Speaker 1: Brian Massey is our Member of Parliament for Windsor West