THUNDER BAY, ON ---  April 28,  2009  – Just hours after the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) formally approved plans to buy new rail cars from Bombardier, federal Minister of Transport John Baird appeared to douse cold water on the deal.

Baird was quoted as saying the federal government’s priority was to create jobs now, while the Bombardier deal was a 10-year contract. The Minister further implied that the $1.2 billion dollar deal, the largest transit contract in Canadian history, may not qualify for federal stimulus funding. The transit contract depends on one-third financing from the federal government.

Thunder Bay Superior-North MP Bruce Hyer immediately requested a meeting with the Transport Minister. “Because of Minister Baird’s comments, I am deeply concerned that this contract may now be in jeopardy. Many people worked for months to put this ground-breaking contract together, and if the federal government doesn’t step up to the plate to do their part the whole thing may fall apart. This would put Thunder Bay jobs at risk,” said Hyer.

Hyer is also concerned about the lack of domestic sourcing requirements from the federal government. Canada is currently the only G7 or NAFTA country that does not have domestic procurement requirements of any kind on federal capital expenditures and transfers. While Toronto mandated a 25% domestic parts and labour requirement on the deal, Hyer recently introduced a private member’s bill in the House of Commons called the Made in Canada Act that would mandate at least a 50% domestic requirement on all federal infrastructure spending, including transit.

“If we want to get the most out of our stimulus spending, the federal government should make sure that spending goes to create Canadian jobs, instead of jobs abroad. And there never has been a better example of a project deserving of stimulus spending than this Bombardier – TTC deal. I will do everything I can to ensure the federal government honours its obligations.” said Hyer.