First of all, I would like to praise the openness shown by the Honourable Mélanie Joly, who promptly said that the federal government was ready to come on board. We know that the federal government had made funding available to the Collège Boréal and La Cité collégiale for up to of 50% of their operational costs.
Given the minister's openness, the federal government wouldn't extend funding for the university's first four years of existence per se, because the university already exists, but for its operational costs. That would give the provincial government time to put its finances in order. We know that one of the promises made by the current government is that it would get to grips with the province's finances. That period of four years would give the province time to realize its goals.
When we met Mr. Ford, he said that once the province's finances are in order, it will be able to fund the Université de l'Ontario français. Those first four years would allow the Ontario government to put its financial house in order. It could then take over funding for the four following years. We could set up a partnership and really, it's just a question of making decisions on how to go about it.
I welcome the federal government's openness to this possible solution. We have a solution. We have to get the various stakeholders together and set up a plan to get the ball rolling. Now that we know the position of each level of government, the solution is before us and it's doable. We are working to get down to the nitty-gritty in order to keep things moving along. We want the university it to be ready to welcome its first students on December 1, 2020. I would be happy to invite you to their graduation ceremony a few years from now.