Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for his expression of concern regarding the ongoing work stoppage affecting Société Radio-Canada and the confederation of the national trade union which represents analysts and reporters in Quebec and New Brunswick.
I am well aware of the uniqueness of the service provided by Société Radio-Canada and the important social and cultural role it plays in French-speaking Canada. I want to assure the hon. member for Acadie--Bathurst that every effort is being made to assist the parties and resolve the collective bargaining differences and get the employees back to the work.
A federal mediator appointed by the Minister of Labour is meeting with the parties today and has been working closely with them for several weeks now. Prior to that the Minister of Labour appointed a conciliation officer to assist the parties in reaching an agreement. Numerous meetings were held in an attempt to arrive at a settlement.
I would like to add that it is not unusual for the parties to agree to a media blackout during mediation talks in order to focus all their attention on collective bargaining. It is unfortunate however, that negotiations in this dispute were delayed for several days earlier this month due to the confusion surrounding the blackout.
The important thing is that the parties are now at the bargaining table and are talking with the mediator. Focusing on what happened several weeks ago is not helpful in achieving the goal of assisting the parties to reach a settlement.
I am sure the hon. member would agree that the best way to achieve a mutually acceptable collective agreement is to allow the negotiation process a fair chance to work.