Mr. Speaker, in the Antoine-Labelle RCM, 1,800 direct and indirect jobs have been lost. The unemployment rate is over 22% and 14 of the 17 lumber mills have closed. The government has the money to help this region, as well as others, which would be better than putting it all towards paying down the debt.
What is the minister waiting for to implement the measures suggested by the Bloc Québécois, such as a $1 billion fund to breathe new life into companies affected by the forestry crisis by stimulating value-added processing?