More than one hundred people packed themselves into Vancouver’s City Hall lobby on Thursday to get a glimpse – and with any luck – a handshake from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
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While Trudeau says the federal government is supplying $20 billion to improve public transit in Vancouver, he didn’t provide any specific details or a timeline for completion of things like the Broadway corridor subway.
Trudeau said his own priorities “resonate and are similar to the priorities the people of Vancouver have put forward”, which may explain why he chose Vancouver for his first city hall visit as prime minister.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has been welcomed to Vancouver for the first time since he was elected prime minister.
Shepherded by Mayor Gregor Robertson, and flanked by security, the prime minister glad-handed his way through throngs of well-wishers crowded in city hall’s rotunda.
“Vancouver and the big cities right across Canada are really looking forward to working with you to strengthen our communities and to build a better country now and into the future, ” Robertson said.
The mayor said it was “so refreshing to have a partner in Ottawa that treats cities with respect and recognizes that we are so vital to the country’s success”.
Robertson characterized it as “productive” and said they talked transit, affordable housing and cultural investments like the Vancouver Art Gallery.
Robertson handed Trudeau a photo of the senior Trudeau’s visit 42 years ago.
And while there wasn’t anything in the form of new announcements, the trip was heavy on symbolism, marking a departure from the frosty relationship Stephen Harper had with Robertson.
The Prime Minister was not able to promise he would meet with the Pope, only that he would try.
Asked whether he would request the Pope apologize for the church’s role, Trudeau said he plans to have a “constructive engagement” with Francis on the matter.
He said the criminal code will need to be amended, and added municipalities and provincial governments will have to play a role in regulating a legal marijuana industry.
“When it comes to distribution and selling and engaging, obviously the provinces and indeed the municipalities will have to be an integral part of that discussion”, Trudeau said.
“Vancouver, like cities across the country will now have a partner in the federal government”, he told a crowd of local politicians, Indigenous leaders, and members of the public. In particular, how the federal government works with cities on issues like transportation.
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“Vancouver has much to offer whether it’s the growing of the creative economy, investments in creative technologies… understanding that building better public transit is essential to creating better and more liveable cities, or innovative clean energy projects like the greenhouse that is being worked on”. “The people to figure that out best are here in this room”.
