It’s not an urban versus rural fight. Not yet, anyway.
Mayors of Canada’s largest cities met last week, and high on their agenda was discussion about how best to use the coming federal election to serve their constituents.
The mayors of the largest 18 cities get together regularly as part of national urban municipalities meetings to consider common needs of large urban centres.
This time, one of the key messages coming out of that caucus was the need to find funding for billions of dollars in the infrastructure that is required to expand the economic base of those communities.
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With a federal election set for October, the group recognized the opportunity for some leverage over the Conservative government and all would-be members of Parliament.
There is an estimated $120 billion shortfall for urban projects in those municipalities, including transportation, public transit and affordable housing.
Both urban and rural municipalities have long pointed out their frustration with funding large-scale projects solely with property taxes, even though they provide returns and growth for the country as a whole. There is a $70 billion federal commitment, which ends in 2023, but money has been slow to flow, say mayors.
Canada’s system of government has few regular transfer payments that urban areas can rely on.
About 65 percent of Canadians live in large, urban municipalities and send 145 parliamentarians to Ottawa, which is a little less than half of all seats in the House of Commons.
It just so happens that the two opposition parties have larger urban support in the Commons than the government.
The Conservatives won their majority in the last election by attracting a few more seats from cities, including Vancouver, Toronto and Ottawa. However, the mayors suggested that the next government will be formed by the party that offers urban ridings increased and more stable support.
This group’s lobbying efforts have been successful in the past.
In 2004, urban municipalities won a share of federal fuel taxes, which is now more than $2 billion. However, they failed in their bid to get a piece of the GST and HST and to obtain a regular share of federal income taxes.
What will this mean for rural Canada? Either the pie has to grow or some pieces will have to get smaller.
michael.raine@producer.com
