I fully agree. I think regional development is huge. I've seen studies on regions like the Saguenay—Lac-Saint-Jean. There's a population drain: the equivalent of one bus per week is leaving the region. It makes no sense in terms of vitality and the population base. When that exodus also involves young people, I find that really tragic. The problem is structural and related to the current economic situation, but it seems to me that there's no vision of the future when you fail to consolidate regional economic diversification and to maintain a population base, one that includes young people.
You also referred to people's behaviour and their reality. There are endless human dramas in these communities and a whole range of social problems. I don't want to get overly dramatic, but when the La Baie plant closed down, there were a number of suicides. Apart from the human cost, there are also health care and social services costs for communities.
What kind of bind does this put the oldest workers in? Obviously, they don't have the resources they need to live. They have to sell their house and whatever meagre assets they have. It doesn't make sense for things to be set up this way. I can guarantee you that ultimately, the most sought after and heavily subscribed programs are vocational training programs. That's the kind of program that anyone with any ability has been steered towards. That's what's currently most promising. When there are tens, hundreds, and sometimes thousands of layoffs in one region, let's at least try to offer the available jobs to those workers who are most able to specialize and deal with the new realities of the labour market. In terms of the current economic situation, an assistance program for older workers is urgently needed.