Thank you, Chair.
I think I'm going to follow up on a question that was asked by Mr. Blois. The Cowichan region, which I represent, is a designated wine-producing region. It got that designation officially from the B.C. government. We have the vast majority of the vineyards on Vancouver Island, and I'll have to send Mr. Blois a bottle of Pinot Gris to see how it measures up with his region.
I did actually share information from budget 2021 with all of the wineries in my region, and the response I got back was that they've all seen a collapse in sales over the last year. Some of them were not able to access any of the relief programs that were offered to many small businesses.
One of the main questions I got back, Minister, had to do with this program. There is interest in this program, but they were wondering, given the difficulties that they've all experienced, why this program is beginning in fiscal year 2022 rather than right now, given the immediate needs of the sector. That was a main recurring question I got from the wineries in my region.
Why are these funds not being made available now, given the difficulties that they've just gone through?