Madam Speaker, it is most unfortunate that the member's passion was not there when Stephen Harper was the prime minister. The Conservative government had the opportunity to negotiate an agreement.
However, to try to leave the impression that this government was negligent in any way on this file is just wrong. We have very competent and capable ministers who have been on this file virtually from day one. He is trying to give Canadians the impression that the government does not care. The member knows there is a compensation package in place of well over $800 million. The Minister of Natural Resources talked about the importance of this industry.
The member talks about the 200,000 direct jobs. Hundreds of thousands of indirect jobs are also critical to our economy. These are middle-class jobs, which we have been emphasizing since day one. The government believes we have to not only negotiate an agreement, but it has to be a good agreement for Canadians. The government has strived to do that. Yes, it might not be on the Conservatives' timetable, but it is not important for us to meet that timetable. It is important that we get the right agreement and a good agreement for Canadians. That will secure the middle-class jobs we have today and will grow the industry, as the Minister of Natural Resources said.
My question for the member is very simple. Would he not agree that it is in Canada's best interest to not just settle on this issue, but that we strive to get the best agreement we can, which will result in more economic and social activity for all Canadians?