Mr. Speaker, I hope the hon. member recognizes that as part of the government he has to represent all of Canada and not just rural Quebec.
Francophones outside Quebec who live in rural areas rely heavily on this plan in order to create spaces, pay people reasonable salaries and have the flexibility to enter into negotiations with the provinces.
A centre is currently being built in my riding in Baie Sainte-Marie, Nova Scotia. However, the money for operations and salaries has been withdrawn, in order to keep talking about these issues. If we want to give parents a real choice, as the hon. member and the minister say, then we must also give them options so that there is a choice to make. The option of creating spaces in rural areas by using tax credits has been dropped.
There are no major companies here and there that will create these centres. The centres have to be created by the community. The responsibility of the federal government is to work in cooperation with the provinces to help these communities build, operate and run these early childhood education centres.