Mr. Speaker, today I am tabling a petition that is very important to the residents of the Saint-Sacrement neighbourhood. This petition was signed by 1,400 citizens who are opposed to the November 1 closing of the postal outlet on Sainte-Foy Road in Quebec City, in the Saint-Sacrement neighbourhood. This closure would deprive many residents, including seniors, business owners, organizations and institutions, of their only postal outlet in this neighbourhood.
Nearly 3,000 households are served by this outlet, which, it should be pointed out, perfectly meets the needs of the customers in this district. Because of the short deadline, the minister responsible for Canada Post must declare a moratorium on these closings in order to avoid interrupting services, which would affect many customers, and to allow talks to continue in order to maintain a postal outlet in the Saint-Sacrement neighbourhood.
I know that the smoke shop owner is currently negotiating with Canada Post, but if there are too many requirements, another business owner very close to the smoke shop would also be extremely interested. We hope that Canada Post is currently holding open discussions, and that it is taking into account the needs of the residents of this district.