Mr. Speaker, I would like to emphasize, contrary to the arguments of my colleague opposite, that some mayors are active in regional development, an area in which I have worked myself. I am thinking here about people like Mr. Beauchemin, the mayor of Rouyn-Noranda, Mr. Marc-Urbain Proulx, a professor at the Université du Québec à Chicoutimi, and many others who do not want any federal intrusion in Quebec jurisdictions. Everybody knows that reaching a consensus in a region is the one and only way to bring projects to fruition. We will not get anything done if we do not get all those responsible for regional development to dance to the same tune.
My question is this: Has the hon. member ever seen in the past situations where a consensus was reached around one or several projects in a region and where federal intrusions have been conducive to a favourable conclusion?