Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Mr. Bilodeau, I would like to clarify with you an answer that the minister gave me earlier. We were talking about the softwood lumber dispute, which has been going on for decades. The U.S. updates their tariffs every five years. For its part, Quebec has updated its forestry regime. I will not repeat the whole thing, but we are facing tariffs that people in the industry, the government of Canada and the government of Quebec consider unjustified and unfair.
I asked the minister whether there was the possibility of an emergency assistance program being created for companies in that sector. Fifty per cent of the amounts in play in the U.S. involve dealings with Quebec. Moreover, 20% of the exports are from Quebec.
The minister's reply suggested that, unfortunately, no such program was on the table. The minister said that he was focused on innovation, increasing productivity and so on, without providing any details.
This tariff crisis is another slap in the face for our industry. In light of this, would it be possible for you to tell us the range of very short-term options that the department is considering right now?