Provincial-Territorial Meeting of Ministers responsible for Local Government

WINNIPEG, July 10, 2007 – Provincial and Territorial Ministers Responsible for Local Government ended their meeting in Winnipeg today, issuing clear recommendations regarding federal investment in municipal infrastructure and emphasizing their desire to enhance the relationship Ministers have with their municipal associations across Canada.

“Strong and viable municipalities and communities are the cornerstone of strong provinces and territories, and a strong Canada. We can learn much from each other and build on our collective knowledge”, said meeting chair Steve Ashton, Manitoba’s Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs. “Each province and territory has expertise to share when implementing priority initiatives, such as infrastructure, for municipalities and communities.”

Ministers welcomed the federal government’s commitment to the seven-year, $33 billion long-term Infrastructure Plan, noting that municipalities and communities continue to have infrastructure challenges. Ministers will communicate their shared perspective to Federal Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities, The Honourable Lawrence Cannon immediately following the meeting, emphasizing:

   
• the need to commence funding quickly, so that work on much-needed municipal infrastructure projects can begin this year,
     
   
• the importance of meaningful and regular consultation with provinces and territories and
     
   
• the need for predictable and ongoing municipal infrastructure funding.

Partnerships and collaboration were key themes of the Winnipeg meeting. “There has been considerable discussion about municipal governance in recent years. All provinces and territories have taken significant and progressive steps to address the issues that have been raised by municipalities, such as changing legislation, providing funding, and building local capacity” said Ashton. “Ministers of local government know how vital it is for Provinces and Territories to work with their municipal associations on these important issues.”

Ministers heard first hand from the Association of Manitoba Municipalities about key issues and challenges facing municipalities and communities in Manitoba. Ministers also heard from Statistics Canada about demographic trends in rural Canada.

Ministers agreed on other areas where partnerships and collaboration will contribute to the development of innovative initiatives and approaches. These areas included the long-term capacity and sustainability of some smaller urban and rural municipalities, the municipal role in addressing climate change, and challenges facing municipalities and communities related to growth and demographic shifts. They observed that significant intergovernmental cooperation will be needed and plan to continue to build stronger relations among themselves and with municipal associations through the coming year.

The next annual meeting of Ministers is in Nova Scotia in 2008.

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Contact:
Graham Gork
Communications Coordinator
Government of Manitoba
204-945-5795