Madam Chair, I am pleased to take part in this debate this evening. As we know, Quebec has been particularly affected by the forestry crisis that has been raging for too long, unfortunately. The people of our region are reaching the end of their rope. The minister must know this because he represents a rural area in Quebec. His government turned its back on forestry workers but did not hesitate to rush to the assistance of Ontario's auto industry. That is the reality.
The new Conservative government policy is: Give it all to Ontario. Give Ontario more MPs. Give Ontario the securities regulator. Give Ontario's automobile industry billions of dollars.
In the meantime, the Prime Minister's puppets from Quebec have quietly agreed to promote Ontario industry while loudly claiming to defend the Quebec nation.
The minister and the government know very well that the forestry industry needs loan guarantees to get back on track. Everyone knows that is the solution, but the government is still doing nothing.
Why does the government claim in the House that loan guarantees are illegal under the softwood lumber agreement while its lawyers are trying to prove the opposite to the London Court of International Arbitration and legal opinions establishing their validity have been issued by various law firms?
What will the minister do if the London Court of International Arbitration ruling in the Canada-U.S. dispute on loan guarantees for the forestry industry states that they are legal?