Madam Speaker, adjournment debates allow us to return to an answer that may not have been entirely satisfactory. Last November, I asked a question related to the victims caught in a grey area, which I will have an opportunity to explain. In response, the Minister of International Trade spouted rhetoric. People will say that it may not be unusual for the Minister of International Trade to spout rhetoric, but I was particularly disappointed that this minister, who lives in the Mauricie region and is very familiar with the issue, evaded my question rather than finding a solution to help the victims.
What are we talking about when we say that people are caught in a grey area when it comes to pyrrhotite? We have spoken quite a lot about this matter. I caution the person who is going to trot out the answer this evening. I do not want to hear about $30 million having been allocated. We know this, as do the victims in Trois-Rivières, especially all those who cannot access this money, which is woefully inadequate to meet their needs.
In any case, this is not really the issue. The people caught in the grey area are the owners of homes with concrete that has a pyrrhotite content between 0% and 0.23%, the benchmark cited in the first ruling made public. However, this benchmark, as the judge mentioned, is not a scientifically proven standard. It is a benchmark that he cited based on the examples he studied in this first wave of court cases.
However, none of the victims caught in this grey area qualify for financial assistance. They are not eligible for any of the $30 million the Liberals keep talking about, because the percentage of pyrrhotite in their homes is under 0.23%, even though we already know that some of them are having problems with pyrrhotite in their foundations anyway. As for those who have not seen any problems yet, their homes are a total write-off. No one would buy a house riddled with pyrrhotite.
The only way to save these people from the grey area is for the federal government to establish a quality standard for concrete aggregates, based on a scientific study. Below a certain percentage, the homeowner could be certain of having no problems, and the home would regain its full value.
How can it be that in 2018, the year when the government has agreed to review the building code standards, no study is being conducted to establish a scientific standard on pyrrhotite in order to rescue all the victims from the awkward grey area that is making it impossible for them to sell their homes?
When is the government going to fund a study on the quality of concrete aggregates that will let the victims in the grey area move on?