Thank you, Madam Chair.
I would like to second what my colleague, Mr. Stevenson, said. I also have the distinct impression that rural or remote regions such as Abitibi-Témiscamingue are simply not getting their fair share of infrastructure or housing programs; I think that these programs are primarily designed for major urban centres.
We are proud to announce the construction of hundreds or thousands of homes, but rural areas, which have enormous needs, get nothing.
Take the example of Abitibi-Témiscamingue. We have been experiencing a housing shortage for 20 years. It costs almost as much to buy a house, or even to rent one, in Abitibi-Témiscamingue as it does in major urban centres. Increasingly, people are victims of air commuting. Indeed, people can no longer settle in Rouyn-Noranda and prefer to have their homes elsewhere and travel by plane. All this has enormous consequences. Yet, through its mines and natural resources, Abitibi-Témiscamingue contributes around 2% to Canada’s GDP. Despite this, we note that last year, the Canada Infrastructure Bank did not invest a single penny in Abitibi—Témiscamingue.
Why are you absent from the Quebec regions, particularly Abitibi-Témiscamingue?