Transport Minister Omar Alghabra refuses to say whether the federal government has — or not — its share of responsibility in the Lac-Mégantic rail tragedy. He still finds it pointless to hold a public inquiry since, according to him, all the light has already been shed on the deadliest derailment in Canada in 150 years.
“I cannot comment on what the government did 10 years ago. It was not our government. So I’m not going to sit here and start explaining the decisions made by previous governments, ”says Mr. Alghabra, appointed to head the Department of Transport by Justin Trudeau after the 2021 election.
Why does he not hold an independent public inquiry to find out for sure? “As far as I know, there are no more unanswered questions,” he replies. As proof, fines have been imposed on offending companies.
According to him, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) has already investigated the matter, and his government has already made sure to change the rules to avoid future accidents like: increasing the number of inspectors, reduction in the maximum speed of trains transporting dangerous materials and new rules on the number of brakes to apply to immobilize them, for example.
“In fact, I would say that if we had the rules that we have today, Lac-Mégantic would not have happened,” he said.
However, residents of Lac-Mégantic are calling for a public inquiry. And for the first time, his outfit was also recommended in the report of a parliamentary committee, written in May 2022, but debated in recent weeks in the Commons. It is one of 14 recommendations (out of the report’s 33) that the government refuses to support — despite having taken equivalent measures, according to the minister’s word.
“We demand an independent public inquiry year after year. This is the only way that we can have a demonstration that the self-management of railway companies does not work, “explains Robert Bellefleur, spokesperson for the Coalition of citizens and organizations committed to rail safety. of Lac-Megantic.
Feds fear lawsuits
Minister Alghabra invited The duty in his office on the top floor of a government building in downtown Ottawa. To access it, all visitors pass under the benevolent eye of former Conservative minister John Baird, appointed administrator of the Canadian Pacific company after his departure from politics.
On his desk is a large railroad nail salvaged from the rubble of Lac-Mégantic and donated by his predecessor, Marc Garneau, as a daily reminder of the 47 lives taken by the Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Railway train ( MMA) 10 years ago.
“Let me be very clear: Transport Canada is the regulator. Railway companies do not regulate themselves, especially when it comes to safety. And I do not delegate this responsibility, ”says the minister, stung. He also promises to reconsider the privilege of railway companies to equip themselves with their own private police forces; its decision is promised by the end of the year.
His government is currently busy leading the delicate operation of building a bypass to get rid of the rails that still cross downtown Lac-Mégantic. The expropriation of 42 properties is contested in court.
Even if it will swallow up hundreds of millions of dollars of Quebec and Canadian public money, the infrastructure will be given to the private company Canadian Pacific to run its trains through. Omar Alghabra explains that it could not have been otherwise: “If I ask them to use a different route, I have to pay for it. »
Why not use its regulator power to simply prohibit their passage on the section? “I am the regulator in terms of safety. And the idea of a bypass to avoid [le centre-ville de] Lac-Mégantic is above all to help the community heal itself. […] I believe that if the government makes a decision that is not justified by safety or environmental impact, [les compagnies ferroviaires] could go to court and oppose it. »
He adds that the railway companies “are important for the health of our economy, for the well-being of our society”. In the same interview, he points out that “goods are transported because Canadians need them, and we have to find a way to transport them”. His role, he says, is to make it happen safely.
Ottawa is not indifferent
In a meeting room on the third floor of the Wellington Building of the federal parliament, right at the end of the parliamentary session, on a Wednesday evening in mid-June, MP Luc Berthold invited elected officials from all parties to watch the film by Philippe Falardeau, unveiled by Quebecor in May, entitled Megantic lake. This is no accident.
“That’s people who will be able to get the message across in their political party,” explains the elected Conservative from Mégantic–L’Érable, the riding where Lac-Mégantic is located.
Contrary to the minister, Luc Berthold believes that there remain “many unanswered questions”, in particular on the responsibility of the railway companies and that, possible, of the federal government, at the time directed by the conservatives.
“As soon as we are sure that the bypass project will be well started, we can look into the public inquiry. Now, a year or two isn’t going to make a difference. But to avoid new tragedies like that, indeed, one day, we will have to shed light on the responsibility in all this. »
Minister Omar Alghabra also says he was very touched by the documentary, which he watched. Even if he finds that some of the criticism conveyed could have been more “constructive”, he suggested listening to his officials responsible for safety within Transport Canada.
With Jean-Louis Bordeleau