Madam Chair, I rise today with a heavy heart for 25 families in Petit-Saguenay, a community of 600 people in my riding whose sawmill closed its doors. Twenty-five fathers and mothers are going home not knowing how they will pay for groceries and rent at the end of the month.
I am also thinking of all the other sawmills, workers and communities that have gone through this same nightmare since the agreement expired in 2015. It has been exactly 10 years since we last had a softwood lumber agreement. For 10 years, this Liberal government has allowed our workers to be crushed by American tariffs, which were just increased to 45%.
Since this Prime Minister took office, tariffs have tripled despite the fact that, during the last election campaign, he got elected by saying that he was the man who would meet the moment and the right person to negotiate with President Trump. He even said that the tariffs would be gone by July 1. Today is November 25.
In 2006, Stephen Harper managed to get the softwood lumber agreement done in just 80 days. When Trudeau arrived in 2015, he said there would be an agreement within the first 100 days. What happened? It is the same old story. Nothing happened. To make matters worse, tariffs are exploding and mills are closing.
Since 2015, mills have closed in Quebec, Ontario, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, British Columbia and across Canada. That has meant the loss of 25,000 direct jobs and 90,000 indirect jobs. Villages that rely solely on the lumber industry are threatened with having to shut down. As a result, businesses are closing their doors, young people are leaving and those communities will never see them again.
Over 200,000 Canadian families depend on this industry. Forestry work is inextricably linked to the future of regions like Saguenay—Lac-Saint-Jean and many others. Our political leaders need to realize that. Our leaders need to get their heads out of their Excel spreadsheets and remember that there are real human beings behind the numbers, workers who care deeply about the forestry industry and have it in their blood. It is often passed down from father to son, from generation to generation, and for many, it is a family affair.
The situation today is no different than it was 10 years ago. The problem is that we have a government that lacks the will to reach an agreement. We know that negotiating with the Americans has never been easy. They are always protectionist, as sector experts would say. That is why the industry is pleading with Ottawa to take urgent action, not to drag its feet.
Our loggers, truckers and factory workers are not looking for handouts. They do not want photo ops. They do not want lip service and, above all, they do not want phony programs. They want an agreement that allows them to sell their lumber at a fair price and keep their dignity.
I will put the question directly to the Prime Minister. When will he follow Stephen Harper's example and do what he did in 80 days? When will he stop making promises and start living up to expectations? Is he going to keep standing by as he watches our regions perish while the Americans line their pockets?
If the Liberal government has failed to reach an agreement after 10 years, three different presidents and billions of wasted dollars, it should make room for a Conservative government that will actually fight for Canada and for our workers. Our forestry workers—