Okay.
I am surprised. Groups in Quebec, including the FADOQ, the Quebec federation of senior citizens, and the AQDR, the Quebec association defending the rights of pre-retirees and retirees, have unanimously said that seniors have clearly not been a priority for your government since it took office.
As recently as last fall, a study by the AQDR and the Observatoire québécois des inégalités, or Quebec observatory on inequalities, reported that half of seniors did not have sufficient income to live with dignity. We could again debate the issue of the 45,000 seniors who have been lifted out of poverty, because numbers can be manipulated to say what you want, but we are talking about income to live with dignity.
Furthermore, it is not just seniors aged 75 and over who do not have sufficient income. The numbers do not reflect the record inflation rate that is affecting the cost of groceries and housing. Nor do I want to hear that you have helped seniors by helping food banks. I think it shows a lack of respect for seniors to expect them to line up at food banks. Unlike the government, inflation does not discriminate against seniors according to their age. The study confirms that half of seniors do not have sufficient income.
What will it take for your government to treat seniors with respect? They built our society and certainly deserve to be treated fairly and with dignity. Separating seniors into groups aged 65 to 74 and 75 and over is not fair to them, Madam Minister.