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NDP Chief Jagmeet Singh speaks to reporters on Parliament Hill, in Ottawa, on Dec. 13, 2022.Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press
The federal Conservatives and NDP are requesting the pressing testimony of the Liberal transport minister after a whole bunch of travellers have been stranded over the vacations.
The Tory and New Democrat members of the Home of Commons transport committee despatched a letter to the committee’s chair on Wednesday requesting a gathering as quickly as potential.
“It’s not sufficient for the Liberal minister to tweet that the scenario was unacceptable,” NDP transport critic Taylor Bachrach in an announcement on Wednesday.
“He’s the minister charged with overseeing Canada’s transportation system and has particular powers underneath laws. If anybody can do one thing to guard passengers, it’s him. Canadians should know what steps he took throughout the disaster and plans to absorb the longer term to guard passengers.”
The chair of the committee, Liberal member of Parliament Peter Schiefke, tweeted on Tuesday that he deliberate to name a gathering to deal with journey woes with the CEOs of Sunwing Airways and VIA Rail.
The opposition MPs are requesting that any hearings additionally embrace a two-hour question-and-answer interval with Alghabra.
Standing committees often meet on a beforehand adopted schedule or on the name of the chair, however a gathering will be known as on the written request of any 4 of its members.
Along with Bachrach, the Conservative social gathering’s transport critic Mark Strahl signed the letter, as did the opposite three Tories on the committee.
The chair is now required to name a gathering to contemplate the written request inside 5 calendar days.
NDP Chief Jagmeet Singh stated earlier Wednesday that the vacation journey woes that left passengers stranded at airports or struggling to search out flights dwelling present why there must be extra competitors in Canada’s airspace.
In a information convention, Singh stated the shortage of alternative for passengers can be making flying much less inexpensive, and he’s calling on the Liberal authorities to search out methods to make the airline business extra aggressive.
The Canadian Transportation Company requires home air service operators to be majority-owned and managed by Canadians, limiting choices for travellers – particularly in rural or distant areas.
Over the vacations, a whole bunch of individuals have been stranded in Mexico when Sunwing cancelled flights, and the airline has stopped flying from Saskatchewan fully till subsequent month.
Air Canada is discontinuing flights from Saskatoon and Regina to Calgary this month after it discontinued flights from Yellowknife to Edmonton final yr.
Singh known as on Transport Minister Omar Alghabra to make sure there may be higher oversight.
“We want to ensure folks have entry to with the ability to get across the nation, and that it’s inexpensive,” Singh stated.
“And proper now, for many individuals, it isn’t in any respect. It’s one thing we have to have a look at and discover options for.”
A spokeswoman for Alghabra’s workplace stated the federal government is doing the whole lot it will possibly to assist travellers.
“All choices are on the desk to make sure that what occurred over the vacations doesn’t occur once more,” Nadine Ramadan stated in a written assertion.
