OTTAWA (Staff) – A Bloc QuŽbecois MP last week called for a government moratorium on rail line abandonment across Canada, particularly in the East.
Otherwise, the East will be at a disadvantage, said Paul Mercier (Blainville – Deux Montagnes).
“Is the prime minister prepared to reconsider government plans that are liable to further emphasize disparities between Eastern and Western Canada,” he asked in the Commons.
No dice, said the government.
The National Transportation Agency has been created to deal with abandonment proposals from the railways.
“We have no plans to declare a moratorium,” said Joe Fontana, parliamentary secretary to the transport minister. “There is a system in place for that to occur.”
