Thank you, Mr. Chair.
A lot has been said since the study began. I myself come from a really remote rural community in northern Quebec. There is a profound difference between what seems to be happening in Alberta and what happens in Quebec. Where I come from, property crimes—when there are any—are often committed by very disorganized young people, who get themselves arrested very quickly. In the little concession where I live, nothing has ever happened in 11 years. There have been no property crimes.
What is happening where you live seems to be caused by people coming from urban areas. So they do not come from the community. They are disorganized at the same time as they are somewhat organized. There is some idea of organization behind it all. You do not seem to have a lot of patrols either. In my community, the police are regularly patrolling the concession roads. We see them on patrol, specifically to prevent drunk driving. They are very visible, except when they are responding to an emergency. The situation seems very different.
My first question goes to Mr. Newark, who might perhaps answer by giving us more details. Can you tell us about a subject that has not been brought up yet, namely the link between this situation and organized crime, which is perhaps a little more urban? In your opinion, are members of criminal organizations providing weapons to those people and advising them about the places to go, given the risks of being arrested? For example, if an individual owes too much money to one of those organizations, is he told that his problem can go away if he steals two or three trucks, I would like to know the link between organized crime and what is happening in rural areas.