2. Committee Biographies

Peter was first elected as a Member of Parliament by the citizens of Vaudreuil-Soulanges in October 2015. Shortly thereafter he was appointed as the Parliamentary Secretary for Youth by Prime Minister Trudeau and in 2018 was given the additional responsibilities of Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Border Security and Organized Crime Reduction. In 2019 Peter was re-elected and was shortly thereafter appointed as the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of the Environment and Climate Change. In March 2021, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau asked him to take on the role of Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship. Prior to entering into politics, Peter worked in numerous capacities lending his expertise in sustainable development to both domestic and international causes. His passion for positive social change inspired his work as the Director and Co-Founder of Youth Action Canada, the CEED Program based in Uganda, East Africa and his work as the National Director of Climate Reality Canada, an organization founded by former US Vice-President and Nobel Laureate Al Gore. For his work he has been awarded a Federal Minister’s Commendation, the YMCA Peace Prize and the Forces Avenir Award for Peace Justice and Humanitarian Aid. Peter holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Concordia University as well as a Master of Science in Renewable Resources from McGill University and currently lives with his wife and two children in his riding of Vaudreuil-Soulanges, Quebec.

Member of the following Committee(s):

• Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities

Issues raised relating to the Transport Canada portfolio:

• Investments by railway companies in local communities
• Investments in public transit
• Deployment of zero-emission vehicles

MP Annie Koutrakis was first elected in the 2019 federal election. Following the opening of the 43^rd Parliament, MP Koutrakis served on the Standing Committee on Finance, the Special Committee on the COVID-19 Pandemic and briefly served on the Special Joint Committee on Medical Assistance in Dying. In addition, she has also served as a member of a number of parliamentary associations and interparliamentary groups.

Prior to entering politics, she worked as the President, CEO, Chair of the executive committee and member of the Board of Directors of the Hellenic Community of Greater Montreal. She has also served in multiple capacities for local organizations.

MP Koutrakis has a diploma in Social Sciences/Business Administration from Dawson College and has studied Human Resources Management at Concordia University. She is fluent in French, English and Greek.

Member of the following committee(s):

• Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities

Issues raised relating to the Transport Canada portfolio:

• Supply chain resiliency
• Port modernization
• Railway safety
• Support for the air and aerospace industry
• Support for independent travel advisors
• Municipal public transit infrastructure
• Deployment of zero-emission vehicles

Vance Badawey was first elected as Member of Parliament on October 19, 2015 for the riding of Niagara Centre. Mr. Badawey began his career in public service as a City Councillor for the City of Port Colborne in 1994. He thereafter was elected as Mayor of Port Colborne in 1997. In 2006 he was re-elected to the office of Mayor in Port Colborne and Regional Councillor for the Regional Municipality of Niagara.

As the Member of Parliament for Niagara Centre, MP Badawey has collaborated with several parliamentary caucuses, including the Indigenous, Horseshoe, Rural and Steel caucuses.

Member of the following Committee(s):

• Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities

Issues raised relating to the Transport Canada portfolio:

• Supply chain resiliency
• Deployment of zero-emissions vehicles
• National Trade Corridors Fund and transportation infrastructure investments
• Ports modernization
• Rail Safety
• Level crossing
• Oversight mechanisms
• Maintenance, repair and replacement of VIA Rail’s fleet
• CTA Review – Long-term agenda for the future of transportation in Canada

National strategy on transportation and logistics (intermodal connections)

Politician, attorney, public servant and humanitarian. Previously candidate in the 2011 general election and firstly elected in October 19, 2015.

Angelo graduated with a B.A. in Political Science from McGill University, completed his studies in civil law at UQAM and obtained his Juris Doctor from Ottawa University, which led to his certification from the Upper Canada Law Society. In search of new horizons, Angelo obtained a certificate from the European Union & its Institutions at the Law Faculty of Lyon (France).

Member of the following Committee(s):

• Standing Committee on Transportation, Infrastructure and Communities
• Standing Joint Committee on the Library of Parliament

Issues raised relating to the Transport Canada portfolio:

• Zero-emission vehicles
• Delays at airports
• Global container shortages
• Impact of climate change on critical infrastructure
• Transparency of information sharing between railways and municipalities

MP George Chahal was first elected in the 44^th Canadian general election as the Member of Parliament for the riding of Calgary Skyview. Prior to his election to Parliament, he served as a member of the Calgary City Council.

Prior to his political career, he worked in the financial sector and the construction sector. MP Chahal has a BA in Economics and a Masters in Environmental Design from the University of Calgary.

Member of the following Committee(s):

• Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities
• Standing Committee on Natural Resources

Issues raised relating to the Transport Canada portfolio:

• Delays at airports
• Railway safety
• National Trade Corridors Fund
• Investments in public transit

Mr. Rogers is the Liberal Member of Parliament for the riding of Bonavista – Burin – Trinity. He was first elected in a by-election that was held on December 11, 2017. Mr. Rogers was elected with 69.2% of the vote.

Before entering federal politics, Mr. Churence Rogers served as the Mayor of Centreville-Wareham-Trinity and as president of the Newfoundland and Labrador Federation of Municipalities.

Member of the following Committee(s):

• Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities

Issues raised relating to the Transport Canada portfolio:

• Support for the creation of the Lac-Mégantic rail bypass
• Support for rural and regional airports
• Labour shortages in the transportation sector
• Supply chain resiliency
• Fleet renewal by Marine Atlantic Inc.

MP Strahl was elected to the 41st Canadian Parliament as the member of parliament for Chilliwack—Fraser Canyon. He served as a member of the House of Commons Standing Committee on National Defence from 2011 to 2013.

In 2011, he ran as a candidate in the riding of Chilliwack–Fraser Canyon and was elected to the House of Commons. He was re-elected in 2015 and served three years as Chief Opposition Whip. MP Strahl was re-elected as Member of Parliament for Chilliwack—Hope in 2019 and served as the critic for Labour. MP Strahl was appointed the Shadow Minister for Transport in October 2022.

Member of the following Committee(s):

•     Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities

Issues raised relating to the Transport Canada portfolio:

• • Resumption and Continuation of Operations at the Port of Montreal
  • Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752
  • Oil Tanker Moratorium Act 
  • Abandoned Vessels

MP Leslyn Lewis is a Canadian lawyer who has served as the member of Parliament (MP) for Haldimand—Norfolk since 2021. MP Lewis contested the party leadership in the 2020 leadership election, placing third.

MP Lewis has a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Toronto, Trinity College graduating Magna Cum Laude; a Master’s in Environmental Studies from York University, with a Concentration in Business and Environment from the Schulich School of Business; a Juris Doctorate from Osgoode Hall Law School; and a PhD in Law from Osgoode Hall Law School.

Before seeking office as a Member of Parliament, MP Lewis was a business owner, having left the practice of law on Bay Street to start her own law firm.

Member of the following Committee(s):

• Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities

Issues raised relating to the Transport Canada portfolio:

• N/A

MP Chris Lewis was elected to represent the riding of Essex in the House of Commons of Canada in the 2019 Canadian federal election and was re-elected in 2021.

In 2022 under interim leader Candice Bergen, MP Lewis was appointed as Conservative critic for Labour, and was re-appointed to the role under Pierre Poilievre’s leadership.

Before entering federal politics, MP Lewis was a municipal councillor in Kingsville, Ontario.

Member of the following Committee(s):

• Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities

Issues raised relating to the Transport Canada portfolio:

• Supply chain issues - Labour shortages, training of skilled workers
• Automotive industry
• Marine Transport
• Support of Oil and Gas Sector

MP Dan Muys was first elected as the MP for Flamborough-Glanbrook in the 43^rd general election. He is currently the Deputy critic for Infrastructure and Communities.

Prior to seeking office, MP Muys worked in the private sector, specifically in the energy and agri-food sectors.  

In a personal capacity, MP Muys is a member of the Rotary Club, the Flamborough Chamber of Commerce and the Copetown United Church. He has also served in the National Governance Committee of the Canadian Public Relations Society in a number of capacities.

Member of the following Committee(s):

• Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities

Issues raised relating to the Transport Canada portfolio:

• Relationship between municipalities and railway companies
• Fatigue management in the rail sector
• Supply chain resiliency
• Short-sea marine shipping
• Price competitiveness in the air sector

Mr. Barsalou Duval was first elected on October 19, 2015. He has a Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) and a Bachelor’s Degree in accounting. Prior to his political career, he taught accounting at the college level and working several years in Cabinet as the accounting auditor. Mr. Barsalou Duval has been highly implicated in his local Bloc Québecois and Parti Québecois riding associations since he was eighteen years old. He thereafter became President of the Forum Jeunesse of the Bloc Québecois, a position he held from 2012 to 2015. In his career, he has also been very active in the Mouvement Montréal français and in the Société Saint-Jean-Baptiste de Montréal.

During the 42^nd Parliament, MP Barsalou Duval was the critic for the Economic Development, Government Operations, National Revenue and Public Accounts. MP Barsalou-Duval has been the parliamentary critic for the transport, infrastructure and communities portfolio since the opening of the 43^rd Parliament.

Member of the following Committee(s):

• Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities

Issues raised relating to the Transport Canada portfolio:

• Delays at airports
• Lac-Mégantic rail bypass
• High frequency rail
• Viability of regional air transportation
• Interline agreements (air transportation)
• Air Passenger Protection Regulations
• Importance of official languages in the transportation sector
• Shoreline Protection Program

• Electrification of the transportation sector

In 2008, Mr. Bachrach was elected to the Telkwa Town Council. After moving to Smithers in 2011, he was elected mayor and thereafter won re-election twice.

Mr. Bachrach was first elected to the House of Commons in the 43^rd Canadian general election.

Outside of his political life, Mr. Bachrach is the owner of Bachrach Communications, a media consultancy firm in Smithers. Since 2018, he has also served as the President of the Go By Bike BC organization, a cycling advocacy group.

Member of the following Committee(s):

• Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities

Issues raised relating to the Transport Canada portfolio:

• Delays at airports
• Workplace conditions for screening officers in Canadian airports
• Public health measures imposed due to COVID-19
• Labour shortages in the transportation sector
• Deployment of zero-emission vehicles

The Hon. Lena Metlege Diab was elected as the MLA for Halifax Armdale in the October 8, 2013 Provincial general election. She was appointed to the Cabinet on October 22, 2013 as Nova Scotia's first female Attorney General and Minister of Justice.  In 2020, Lena was entrusted with an additional cabinet responsibility as Minister of Labour and Advanced Education.  In September 2021, Ms. Metlege Diab was elected as the Member of Parliament for Halifax West. She is the first female MP to represent the riding.

She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Political Science from Saint Mary's University, a Master of Public Administration, and a law degree from Dalhousie University in 1990.

Ms. Metlege Diab sits as a member of the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights and Standing Committee on Science and Research.

Pam Damoff was first elected as the Member of Parliament for Oakville North—Burlington in 2015. Ms. Damoff has previously served as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Indigenous Services and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health.

Ms. Damoff is a community activist and business professional with over 25 years of corporate experience. Before being elected as a Member of Parliament, she served as an Oakville town councillor from 2010 to 2015. During her time on council, she was a member of the Oakville Public Library Board, the budget committee of the Town of Oakville, and the Oakville Tourism Partnership.

Ms. Damoff was recognized as a leading advocate for active transportation and better cycling infrastructure in Oakville. She co-founded Cycle Oakville to promote cycling and improve cycling infrastructure,and received the 2013 Bicycling Leadership Award from Share the Road Cycling Coalition for her promotion of cycling in Ontario. She is an active volunteer in her community, serving as Chair of the Oakville Terry Fox Run and a member of the organizing committee of the Courage Polar Bear Dip.

Ms. Damoff is a proud recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal and the Paul Harris Fellow recognition from Rotary International. She also received the Linda Jones Women’s Activist Award from the Oakville District Labour Council for her community service, and the Top 40 Fabulous Women Over 40 Excellence Award for Community Leadership.

She is passionate about many causes, including employment for persons living with disabilities, women’s empowerment, mental health, environmental protection, and cycling and improved cycling infrastructure.

As the Member of Parliament for Vaughan-Woodbridge, Francesco Sorbara sits on the House of Commons Standing Committee on Natural Resources and Subcommittee on Agenda and Procedure of the Standing Committee on Natural Resources.

An economist by training and a CFA Charterholder, Francesco worked in the global financial markets in both Canada and the United States for JPMorgan Chase, DBRS, and the Bank of Nova Scotia. Originally from Prince Rupert, B.C., Francesco earned an honours degree in economics & finance from Simon Fraser University and a Masters of Arts (Economics) from the University of Toronto. Before entering public life, Francesco worked in the private sector for approximately twenty years.

Francesco’s professional background in finance and economics has provided him with an extensive expertise in financial materials across a broad range of industry sectors, including automotive media and telecommunications, retail, real estate, energy, infrastructure, and financial services.