Mr. Speaker, at the beginning of his speech, my colleague referred to the matter of the tax to counteract terrorism in the air.
He said that the Standing Committee on Transport suggested that, rather than being 100% user-pay, the cost should be split 50-50 between users and the government.
I would like to list the Quebec airports that will be affected by this charge: Alma, Bagotville, Baie-Comeau, Chibougamau, Gaspé, Îles-de-la-Madeleine, Kuujjuaq, Kuujjuarapik, La Grande Rivière, La Grande-3, La Grande-4, Blanc-Sablon, Mont-Joli, Montréal, Quebec City , Roberval, Rouyn-Noranda, Sept-Îles and Val-d'Or. These are, basically, all the regional airports there are in Quebec. The rest of Canada must all have similar lists.
Would the suggestion by the Standing Committee on Transport not have been preferable to the government's plan to tax only users, which will have a regressive effect in the regions, where there is no great likelihood of terrorist activities? Might we not have been in a far better situation as far as regional economic development is concerned if the transport committee's suggestion had been accepted?