The federal Conservatives and NDP are calling on the Liberal transport minister to testify after hundreds of travelers were stranded over the holidays.
Conservatives and New Democrats on the House of Commons transport committee sent a letter to the chair of the committee on Wednesday demanding a meeting as soon as possible.
“It’s not enough for a Liberal minister to tweet that the situation is unacceptable,” NDP transportation critic Taylor Bachrach said in a media statement Wednesday.
“He is the minister charged with overseeing Canada’s transportation system and has specific powers under the legislation. If anyone can do something to protect passengers, it’s him. Canadians deserve to know what steps he took during the crisis and plans to take in the future to protect travelers.”
The committee’s chairman, Liberal MP Peter Schiffke, tweeted on Tuesday that he planned to convene a meeting with the CEOs of Sunwing Airlines and VIA Rail to discuss the travel issues.
Transport Minister Omar Algabra stands up during question period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on December 16, 2021. (Patrick Doyle/The Canadian Press)
Opposition lawmakers are demanding that all hearings include a two-hour question-and-answer period with Transport Minister Omar Algabra.
Standing committees normally meet on a previously agreed schedule or when called by the chairman, but a meeting may be called at the written request of any four of their members.
As well as Bachrach, Tory transport critic Mark Strahl signed the letter, as did the other three Tories on the committee.
The chairman must now convene a meeting to consider the written request within five calendar days.
A passenger boards a taxi after her train was canceled near Coburg, Ontario. (Nick LaChance/Reuters)
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said earlier Wednesday that travel problems that have left travelers stranded at airports or struggling to find flights home over the holidays show there needs to be more competition in Canada’s airspace.
In a press conference, Singh said the lack of choice for passengers also makes flying less affordable. He is calling on the Liberal government to find ways to make the airline industry more competitive.
The Canadian Transport Agency requires domestic air service operators to be majority owned and controlled by Canadians, which limits options for passengers – especially in rural or remote areas.
Over the holidays, hundreds of people were stranded in Mexico when Sunwing canceled flights and the airline stopped flying out of Saskatchewan entirely until next month.
Air Canada is ending flights from Saskatoon and Regina to Calgary this month, after ending flights from Yellowknife to Edmonton last year.
Singh called on Algabra to ensure there was better oversight.
“We need to make sure that people have access to the ability to get around the country and that it’s affordable,” Singh said.
“And right now, for a lot of people, that’s not the case at all. It’s something we have to look at and find solutions to.”
A spokesman for Alghabra’s office said the government was doing everything it could to support travellers.
“All options are on the table to ensure that what happened over the holidays does not happen again,” Nadine Ramadan said in a written statement.
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