Mr. Speaker, I apologize and I appreciate that my hon. colleague was listening so intently to my speech.
It is now up to the Prime Minister to walk the talk, stand up to his B.C. Liberal MPs, and champion the pipeline in B.C. to ensure that it actually gets built. It is not a single region that would benefit from this project; it is all of Canada. When we create jobs, the benefits are felt by all, from the mom and pop grocery stores to the gas stations where people fuel up in the morning. Sometimes politicians forget to include this in their vision when they are talking about resources, be it softwood lumber or the creation of future pipelines. I know that, in my riding, we are going to face hundreds if not thousands of job losses as a result of the current government's failure to secure a new softwood lumber agreement.
When the energy sector took a hit in the last few years, it was a very difficult time for people in my constituency and indeed all across Canada. We all had acquaintances, friends, or loved ones who had been impacted negatively or lost a job. Even our airlines took a hit, with direct flights cancelled between Calgary, Prince George, Terrace, Brandon, Penticton, Kamloops, and Abbotsford. It was a huge hit, given that a daily round trip and domestic service into an airport in a small community roughly the size of Prince George generates $2.5 million in value-added GDP and $5.8 million in economic impact.
We are not just talking about a pipeline. We are talking about Canada's economy. We are talking about the government—the current Prime Minister and his 17 B.C. MPs—standing up for a project that is so vital for not just the province of British Columbia but for all of Canada.