HALIFAX – New Democrats campaigned to fix Ottawa in the last federal election, and Jack Layton says that includes repairing the relationship between Ottawa and the country’s municipalities.
“I was a Toronto city councillor in the 1990s, when the first wave of downloading crashed onto Canada’s municipal shores. We won’t let that happen again. Not without a fight,” said Layton.
Layton was addressing municipal leaders today at the Federation of Canadian Municipalities’ Annual Convention. With the federal government set to unveil its post-election budget Monday, Layton had strong advice for Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
“Communities need federal help now to upgrade transit, roads, water systems, and other infrastructure. There’s no better way to create quality jobs and improve people’s quality of life. And after a Throne Speech that ignored infrastructure altogether, we're looking to Monday’s budget to deliver some practical first steps.”
Layton said he believes municipalities deserve more respect in Ottawa, alongside other orders of government.
“We have fought together for 10 years to create a seat for municipalities at the national table. As leader of Canada’s official opposition, let me tell you, municipalities will always have a seat at our table,” Layton said.
