Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I'd like to start by prefacing my questions and remarks with thanking all the witnesses here for coming. I hear your message about the situation of the industry.
My riding has three regional airports that have all been hit hard. I know that if Mr. Bachrach were here, he would have the same message. I think he has five regional airports in his riding. I have Penticton, Castlegar and Trail. Air Canada has completely pulled out of my riding. It used to have multiple flights per day. It's been a huge issue for my riding in regard to people being able to move. As people have been mentioning, there are the cargo issues as well.
I'd also like to point out to the Atlantic airports people that the Sydney airport, which you mentioned, is named after my grandmother's cousin, J.A.D. McCurdy, a real family hero, so I have a personal stake in that airport as well, in that sense.
We're all concerned about the viability of the industry, especially with regard to regional routes. In early December, I talked face to face with Minister Garneau about the sector-specific supports that were apparently being negotiated at the time. He told me this was ongoing.
I'd like to start by asking Mr. Ferguson about those negotiations: whether his union has been engaged by the government in those talks and whether or not they have what he would be pushing for to shape those supports in regard to the workers he represents.