WINNIPEG — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will allow local leaders decide how billion of dollars in federal infrastructure funding should be spent.
Trudeau spoke at the Federation of Canadian Municipalities’ annual conference in Winnipeg on Friday.
“We’ve laid out a vision of the kind of Canada we want to build, and we’re leaving the project selection to the experts. You,” said Trudeau.
READ MORE: Mayors of Canada’s biggest cities hopeful on infrastructure funding
Mayor Brian Bowman spent time with the prime minister before he spoke at the conference.
Bowman said the conversation focused on the importance of making decisions quickly about where the federal funding will go.
“The emphasis was on time, and we all want to move as quickly as possible,” said Bowman.
The Liberals have promised $60 billion worth of infrastructure funding for municipalities that will be doled out in two phases, the first happening over the next several years, with the second coming after that.
More than 1,500 mayors, councillors and other municipal representatives are in Winnipeg for the conference, which runs until Sunday.
The mayors of Canada’s big cities expressed optimism about infrastructure funding following a meeting in Winnipeg on Thursday with a member of Trudeau’s cabinet – Infrastructure and Communities Minister, Amarjeet Sohi.
Sohi said the federal government wants to be flexible enough to respect the decisions of local governments on how to spend infrastructure dollars.
With files from The Canadian Press
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