Thank you, Ms. Romanado.
The question is open, so we have the space needed for exploring it in depth.
I am going to try not to go back over what has already been said. We actually have pretty much exhausted certain subjects.
I can tell you that in the Bas-Saint-Laurent region, which I proudly represent, people are proud to live in their territory. They rolled up their sleeves in recent years, because the region was experiencing a loss of vitality.
One aspect that has not been mentioned today is the accelerated aging of the population. In the Lower St. Lawrence, one person out of four is aged 65 or over. In 20 years, it will be one person in three.
I represent the people of the RCM of Les Basques, where one in two people is aged 60 or over. Imagine how difficult it is to keep people in the region and develop it when there are so many people who are not in the labour force. It is reasonable for these people to be opting to retire, but how are we going stem the decline of a territory when the actors there, like us, its members of Parliament, are unable to work efficiently?
We are currently having to deal with numerous constraints. The Bas-Saint-Laurent, Gaspésie and Îles-de-la-Madeleine regions are a living laboratory. Today, those regions are targeted by electoral redistribution. I don't want to be a prophet of doom, but I guarantee you that other regions of Quebec and even from all over Canada will experience the same fate over the next few years.
The idea of occupation of the territory is therefore crucial. How do we want to develop this? Do we just want people to settle in places with no infrastructure, where there is little access to technology and local services?
It is difficult to develop at the same pace and in the same way as major urban centres do.