Absolutely. Also, in cases where there was no other choice but to close a processing plant, we demanded some assistance to see people through the transition period.
This brings me back to POWA. It's somewhat disconcerting to realize that the government has no game plan. Even in the case of the auto industry, we get the impression that everything is a little vague. The same is true when it comes to ownership. There are virtually no Canadian-owned forestry companies left anymore. The same can be said of metal and mining sector companies. While it's upsetting that the Montreal Exchange is moving to Toronto, fewer companies are trading on the TSX because companies are no longer operating in Canada. I think we have a problem here.
Philosophically speaking, before the current government took office, the situation was neglected. It is time to ask ourselves some serious questions, such as: Do we really want a forestry industry that produces value added products? What type of equipment do we want? How do we compare? What is our strategy?
There is another important factor to consider. Can our manufacturing sector survive dollar parity? That is what we can expect to see after the recovery takes hold. Many Canadian industries are in danger of being killed by our petro-currency. These are some major questions that never seem to be addressed. If the government doesn't move to set up forums to discuss these issues, we have to wonder who will take the initiative.