Mr. Speaker, this week we celebrate Information and Communications Technologies Week.
For the past two decades, we have been witnessing the rapid development of a new technological field, computer science, which has completely revolutionized our ways of doing things and our perception of the world.
Whether or not we are familiar with these new tools, we have to recognize that they are now playing a major role in our daily lives, both at work and at home.
In this regard, we must praise the various governments for recognizing early the importance of information and communications technologies for the economic, social and human development of our communities.
The prosperity of a nation is now closely related to its quick adjusting to the so-called “new economy”, which is an economic order built around the development and use of new technologies.
I want to mention the Quebec government initiative to promote access to information and communications technologies for less fortunate families. This program allowed 217,500 low income families in Quebec to buy or rent a computer. Moreover, close to 286,000 additional households in Quebec can now surf the Internet.
So, the Quebec model should once again serve as an example to provide equal opportunities for all.