Chris Malette, Bay of Quinte MP, left, shared a moment on Tues., Oct. 4, 2025 on the floor of the House of Commons with Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne shortly after federal Budget 2025: Canada Strong was presented to Parliament.
Changes in the global trading system are causing massive disruptions and uncertainty for Canadians.
The world has changed, and Canada’s economic strategy must change. Budget 2025: Canada Strong is our plan to transform our economy from one that is reliant on a single trade partner to one that is stronger, more self-sufficient, and more resilient to global shocks.
“Budget 2025 is an investment budget – a confident Canada taking control of its own future," expressed the Rt. Hon. Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada. "Central to that mission is building local infrastructure, so we can empower Canadians with faster commutes, better careers, and lower costs. With a new investment of over $50 billion, we are building stronger communities to build Canada strong.”
This budget is a plan to enable $1 trillion in investments over the next five years. That can increase our GDP by over 3.5 per cent equivalent to more than $3,500 for every Canadian – delivering far more for Canadians than what’s being taken from us. This is a plan for Canada to give ourselves more than any foreign government can take away – a plan to build Canada strong.
Today, Chris Malette, Member of Parliament for Bay of Quinte met with Belleville Mayor Neil Ellis to highlight Budget 2025’s investments to support a wide range of infrastructure projects and help local communities build Canada Strong.
“Investing in wastewater infrastructure, such as the Avonlough Sanitary Pumping Station, is crucial for our growing communities as these investments ensure the proper systems are in place to accommodate the construction of new housing and the expansion of communities across Canada," MP Malette stated on behalf of the Honourable Gregor Robertson, Minister of Housing and Infrastructure and Minister responsible for Pacific Economic Development Canada.
Originally announced in March 2025, the $16.1-million investment in the Avonlough Sanitary Pumping Station highlights the crucial role in strengthening essential infrastructure and getting more homes built faster.
“The Avonlough Sanitary Pumping Station and Conveyance System is a key project in providing municipal wastewater servicing for the development of the Loyalist West Secondary Plan major growth area," said Mayor Neil Ellis. "The system will ultimately service approximately 9,000 new residential units in the city’s west end and unlock new development lands. This funding will help alleviate the burden on taxpayers and allow for the development of crucial housing options for our community.”
The Build Communities Strong Fund will invest $51 billion over 10 years, followed by $3 billion per year ongoing, to revitalize local infrastructure – the hospitals, universities, and colleges that serve our people, the roads and bridges that move our goods, and the water and transit systems that sustain our towns. The program will include:
• A provincial and territorial stream that will provide $17.2 billion over 10 years to support infrastructure projects and priorities in housing, health care, and education. This could include transit infrastructure, colleges, universities, medical schools, and water and wastewater facilities.
o From this stream, $5 billion over three years will be dedicated specifically to a new Health Infrastructure Fund, upgrading health infrastructure such as hospitals, emergency rooms, and urgent care centres.
• A direct delivery stream that will provide $6 billion to support regionally significant projects, large building retrofits, climate adaptation, or community infrastructure. This could include clean-energy generation and storage projects, flood protection, and new community and recreational spaces.
• A community stream that will provide $27.8 billion for local roads, bridges, water systems, and community centres – getting the basics right and helping towns and cities grow.
The Build Communities Strong Fund will build new infrastructure to speed up work and bring down costs. When colleges and universities have archaic buildings, when hospitals are over capacity, and when water systems fail, productivity drops and businesses pay more. The Build Communities Strong Fund will spur economic activity, create new careers in the skilled trades, and give investors the confidence to build around reliable public infrastructure.
This fund is part of the government’s broader nation-building mission. This includes the Major Projects Office to fast-track transformative energy, trade, and transportation projects across the country, Build Canada Homes to supercharge housing construction, and the Defence Investment Agency to use domestic resources and materials to scale up our industrial base.
“To build the strongest economy in the G7, we must build infrastructure at a speed and scale not seen in generations," said — The Hon. François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Finance and National Revenue. "The Build Communities Strong Fund is the essential investment in nation-building, targeting the roads, hospitals, schools, and water systems that underpin local prosperity. By delivering this critical infrasructure to communities across the country, we are directly investing in our workers and businesses – and building Canada strong.”