Mr. Speaker, the goal of our government and our department is to do business with small and medium sized businesses from all areas of the country. At first glance, I was surprised by those numbers and I had to ask some questions. It must be understood that those figures do not tell the whole truth. For instance, certain companies may have their head office in Ottawa, but still create jobs elsewhere. Also, many Quebeckers work on the Ottawa side, and vice versa. Thus, all the facts must be taken as a whole.
In the House of Commons on March 26th, 2009. See this statement in context.