Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
I'd like to thank the witnesses. What they've told us today corresponds word for word to the concerns we're hearing here at home in Manitoba's francophone communities. It certainly reflects what we're hearing from the urban community in Saint Boniface, but it particularly reflects the concerns of rural communities across our province as well as in the Prairies.
Thank you for giving us such clear recommendations. As my colleagues know, I've been talking about the need to invest in early childhood services and in education in this committee for nearly three years. Personally, I have experienced my own difficulties in this regard. Our community has a francophone day care centre, but because of the labour shortage, I was never able to send my children there. When time passes and parents have no other options, they end up sending their children to the anglophone system, and we sometimes lose them forever.
I have questions for both of you, starting with Mr. Desjardins.
How important is it to invest in early childhood services? We know that we need infrastructure, that is to say day care centres, but also staff to take care of children. How important is it for the federal government to make stable investments in this area? How essential are these investments in retaining young families in our communities?