Thank you, Madam Chair.
Minister, my initial reaction to yesterday's announcement was favourable. I thought it was good news. It's better to have an agreement than no agreement, so I'm happy about that. I think it would have been very serious if Google had stopped sharing news links.
However, I think there are still a lot of questions about this agreement. I think my concerns are shared by all of my colleagues and by many stakeholders in the news sector in Quebec and Canada. In particular, I wonder about the distribution of the money. You mentioned that a collective would manage this distribution. Since the beginning, I've been concerned about the place allotted to smaller players in a collective like this, which will likely cover hundreds of media companies.
This announcement has been well received, but there are a lot of details missing that might reassure these smaller players.
Can you assure me that you'll make certain that the criteria implemented and managed by the collective will be specific and rigorous enough to take regional realities into account? How will the money be distributed among journalists in the regions versus those working in major centres?
If I understand correctly, it won't be the government managing how the money is distributed. However, this money must not be monopolized by the big media companies. You said earlier that you were going to make sure to protect the most vulnerable media outlets. Since the government is not going to manage this, I expect it will insist on extremely rigorous criteria.
I would like to hear what you have to say on this matter, because it's a concern for the regions.