Subcommittee on Canadian Industrial Sectors committee  If you don't help the industry, those companies that have launched new products won't be able to continue. People don't seem to understand the urgent nature of the situation. The automotive sector, Mr. Gourde, needs to get its head above water and to breathe in order to be able to continue; you must understand that the forest industry, which has 325,000 more workers, is asking you for the same thing.

Subcommittee on Canadian Industrial Sectors committee  They will if you offer them an acceptable commercial rate. I told you that it was Export Development Canada... Call that agency if you want, but establish a special envelope for the forest sector.

Subcommittee on Canadian Industrial Sectors committee  I'd like to add that that depends on the type of assistance the program would provide. If it's a tax refund and we don't make a cent, we'll be in the hole. That doesn't help. It has to be a direct refund from the government to business; otherwise that wouldn't be much of a gift.

Subcommittee on Canadian Industrial Sectors committee  If the primary processing industry doesn't deliver a quality product at a reasonable price, the secondary and tertiary processing industries will suffer. The primary processing industry must be competitive and deliver a high-quality product at acceptable price in order to enable the secondary processing industry to come up with emerging products.

Subcommittee on Canadian Industrial Sectors committee  I am glad you've asked me that question because it enable us to say what we've done. Quebec was the only province that officially voted in favour of the agreement, by a recorded vote of its members. Check and see what provinces held a recorded vote in favour of the agreement reached by Mr.

Subcommittee on Canadian Industrial Sectors committee  A commercial loan rate is set by the market; you know that very well. A regular commercial rate may be 8% at one point, and the following week, it may be 9%. It's the loan market rate.

Subcommittee on Canadian Industrial Sectors committee  I repeat, it's not a subsidy that we want. We're talking about a budget envelope; that's no doubt what you mean. I suppose that the budget envelope would be comparable to that of the automotive sector. We represent some 300 members in Quebec. The small organizations are definitely requesting a very small amount in order to refinance.

Subcommittee on Canadian Industrial Sectors committee  Ask yourself that question; it's serious. I'm not joking with the question; I'm very serious. At some point, if we do nothing on the ground that we have an agreement... Would the agreement have the effect of killing off a global industry of a country, an industry that has 825,000 workers?

Subcommittee on Canadian Industrial Sectors committee  No, I disagree, and soon I'm going to ask the following question: does the government, whatever it may be, consider that the Canadian and Quebec forest industry is as important as an agreement?

Subcommittee on Canadian Industrial Sectors committee  It is entirely legal to guarantee us loans at a commercial rate. A loan guarantee at a preferential rate or with assumed interest payments is illegal. I don't know who wrote that, yesterday or the day before, but hiding behind the fear that the Americans will apply penalties... We experienced Lumber IV—you must remember that—and we won in all the tribunals for three or four years, and we nevertheless faced proceedings.

Subcommittee on Canadian Industrial Sectors committee  The problem is that we're experiencing two crises in Quebec. That's the dilemma. It's even worse than in the other provinces of Canada. We were going through a structural crisis before the economic crisis that the United States is experiencing. In Quebec, our fibre was considered to be the most expensive.

Subcommittee on Canadian Industrial Sectors committee  Thank you very much. This is the fourth time I've appeared before various committees to say what the industry thinks about all this. I hope it will be the last. This morning, I'm not here to represent just the Quebec Forest Industry Council. I also have a motion to introduce from 14 groups, including the two major municipal unions of Quebec, the forestry cooperatives, foresters, sylvicultural workers, the Quebec wildlife people and the controlled harvesting zone suppliers.

Finance committee  If you are not paying any income tax...

Finance committee  There are virtually no projects. Those we have at the moment have to do with biomass and co-generation. Very few projects were actually initiated. There is a discussion of work sharing, and I would take this opportunity to answer Mr. Wallace's question. In order to do work sharing, there has to be a job.

Finance committee  As far as I know, the discussions in Quebec are mainly about Quebec programs having to do with cogeneration and biomass. In addition, many projects are being considered, at Forintek Canada, for example. Universities also have many projects on their drawing boards, but no concrete projects have actually been carried out, which is what you are asking about.