I would say that I am a creature of the provincial government. I'll say it as I see it. Sometimes, I feel that the provincial government is no more qualified than I am when it comes to negotiating this kind of situation.
I'll just give you an example.
I'm dealing with a security issue. We've already discussed this together. As I said earlier, I am subject to a risk coverage plan. In my jurisdiction, national defence has a public safety service. National defence residences are located in my jurisdiction. Who is responsible for their security?
Currently, this area is not included in my risk coverage plan, but I do have certain responsibilities. For example, I don't act as a first responder, but I will ensure safety on the streets. That is a major problem.
Beyond the problems, there are also challenges—I want to put this correctly—for the people who work there. The firefighter wants to put out a fire. If I tell the firefighter at the military base that he can't respond in his territory because it's on our side, he gets frustrated. He's a firefighter. He wants to be active. It's the same for firefighters in my city. When I arrive to negotiate, we try, but we have to wait to receive legal opinions.
I'm straying a bit from the topic, but this is my reality. If someone tells me, “Ms. Perrault, you're not responsible for security”, they'll have to take responsibility for it.
Am I required to verify whether national defence's public safety criteria are the same as the criteria imposed on me by public safety?
In fact, I'm caught in a bit of a bind. If I'm required to have four firefighters on duty or eight firefighters for a response, does national defence have the same obligations?
Is all of this my responsibility?
I'm asking questions, but I don't have any answers. National defence has lawyers. It's a much larger organization than mine. I've sought legal opinions. I've asked what I should rely on. Then I have to knock on the provincial government's door to request a decree, a signed agreement, that's legally binding. If I want an agreement that is legally binding, I have to have it ratified by the Government of Quebec, because I can't have a direct agreement with the government. That's complicated too.
As I told you, I'm a civilian.