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PM delivers remarks in Quebec City
Thank you all for the great welcome.
I’m always so warmly received here and it’s always a pleasure for me to be back in Quebec City, the sister city of my hometown, Calgary.
I would also like to thank my colleague Shelly Glover, the new Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages, for her kind introduction, and extend my greetings to all of our distinguished guests, Régis Labeaume, Mayor of Quebec City; Marguerite Delisle, Chair of the National Battlefields Commission; and representatives of our Government, including Minister Denis Lebel of course, and Minister Steven Blaney, Senator Suzanne Fortin-Duplessis, Senator Diane Bellemare, Senator Michel Rivard, Senator Ghislain… Senator Ghislain Maltais, and also MP Jacques Gourde, Chair of our Quebec caucus.
Ladies and gentlemen, as Prime Minister of Canada, I am privileged to have the opportunity to visit some of the most beautiful parts of this country, and I can tell you that it’s always a treat to visit splendid Quebec City, especially at this time of the year.
When one stands at the foot of Gilmour Hill, with Promenade Samuel-de-Champlain nearby, it is easy to see why your city attracts so many visitors each year.
The historic character that sets this beautiful city apart can sometimes make us forget about the city’s economic vitality.
But our Conservative Government has been a key ally for a number of major economic, cultural and historical projects here in Quebec City.
They include the new PEPS complex, the National Optics Institute and, more recently, the Armoury.
What is important is to improve the quality of life of the people who call this place home.
For instance, some people—indeed, many people—use Gilmour Hill to move about the city during the summer months.
It’s been said that some 9000 people use Gilmour Hill on a daily basis on weekdays.
It seems that the Mayor is among them.
But as you know, Gilmour Hill is closed to traffic in winter.
One can easily imagine the traffic jams, especially at rush hour, when thousands of people are suddenly forced to take a different route to reach their destination.
Quebec City has for a few years now been calling for Gilmour Hill to be kept open year-round and has indicated its willingness to contribute financially to making this happen.
A number of studies were accordingly commissioned to evaluate the technical feasibility of the project, its environmental impacts, and its costs.
Those studies were used by our Government to make its decisions, and today it is my great pleasure to announce that through a partnership with the Mayor and Quebec City, Gilmour Hill will now be opened year-round.
I am also pleased to announce that our Government will be making a substantial investment to develop a trail along Gilmour Hill.
That trail will be accessible to all and will especially be enjoyed by cyclists and pedestrians who want to take in the Plains of Abraham.
These days, the Plains of Abraham are more than a memorial to the past.
They are used for recreational purposes, for celebrations, and are an ideal venue for major festivals in the Old Capital.
And Quebec City, for its part, will cover the maintenance costs for Gilmour Hill.
In short, my friends, this investment will make a real difference in the lives of Quebec City’s residents while raising the profile of our historical heritage as we approach the 150th anniversary of Confederation.
And it is through measures of this kind that our Government will continue to address the concerns of Quebec City, a city that is near and dear to our hearts.
Quebec City has demonstrated extraordinary vitality over these past years of economic uncertainty, a record…a phenomenon in fact.
And I want to assure you that our Government considers it important to continue to invest in job creation, long-term growth and prosperity in all parts of Quebec and Canada.
Thank you very much.
