Mr. Speaker, the Government of Canada is taking rural Canadians for granted. Cuts to regional development programs and vital infrastructure created through the community access program signal rural Canada just is not a priority.
The rural population is aging and fewer Canadians are sticking around rural areas to make a living. In the face of this exodus the most savage cut is to the funding and staffing of the Rural Secretariat, which will go from 92 to 15 staff.
Before we start to see ghost towns, will the government reverse its ill-conceived cuts and show it actually cares about rural Canada?