Mr. Speaker, the Government of Quebec has indicated its intention to sign with the federal government an administrative agreement similar to the one the latter has signed with Newfoundland and Nova Scotia for the development of offshore oil and gas resources in these two provinces.
Will the Minister of Natural Resources tell us whether he will commit to negotiating an administrative agreement with Quebec by the end of 2002, so that oil and gas exploration in the Gulf of St. Lawrence may begin in the spring of 2003?