Madam Speaker, do not muzzle the ox is exactly right. We should feed the horse that is hauling the cart, not starve the donkey bearing the burden. We need to make sure we are taking care of our farmers, and they will take care of Canadians. It is time we prioritize these things.
The next F I want to talk about in moving Canada on the pathway forward economically and to a future of prosperity is about making sure we deal with those in our fuel sectors, our oil and gas sectors. The government cannot talk those sectors down for 10 years, telling everybody we have dirty oil and dirty gas, and then expect those sectors to continue to produce at a high level when it has maintained policies that have been detrimental to their progress and prosperity, policies such as tanker bans, pipeline bans, overtaxation and industrial carbon taxes.
When these sectors are put at a regulatory and taxation disadvantage, the investment dollars for them are going to flee our country, and it is very hard for a country to move forward on the pathway to prosperity when those who generate our fuel are overcome. Emission caps and production caps are absolutely detrimental to the future prosperity of this country.
The next F I want to talk about is the forestry sector. The last Conservative prime minister we had was able to reach a deal in 80 days that lasted for 10 years. It has been over a decade that the Liberal government has been in power and there is still no relief for our forestry sector. We are seeing mills close all the time in our country, and people are losing good jobs across this nation. It is time we reprioritize. Canadians are looking for a government to put the priority on our forestry sector again.
That brings me to the consideration of rural Canadians, who are oftentimes the most overlooked and most forgotten segment of our nation. Those who live in rural and remote communities are oftentimes forgotten by the government in place now. Their way of life is oftentimes not considered when it comes to policies such as EV mandates, which take away the choice of the kind of vehicle they need and want to drive in in the areas in which they live.
The government attacks their way of life and traditions in hunting and fishing, with over-regulation and especially with firearms legislation that punishes the law-abiding firearms owner, hunter and sport shooter. The government misplaces the priorities of rural Canadians and says it is going to tackle crime by doing this. No, rural crime is soaring under the Liberals' watch, because they have neglected the issues that matter most.
If we want more security in rural areas, we need to make sure law-abiding firearms owners have the ability to protect and stand on guard for their homes and properties properly and lawfully. As many of them will tell us, firearms ownership is a deterrent to rural crime. We need to stand up for their rights.
The next F I want to talk about in the pathway forward to prosperity and overcoming the challenges that this budget has presented for Canadians is to make sure that we address the challenges we are finding in the area of rural connectivity, broadband access and mobility access. When budgets are put together, oftentimes an urban-centric slant is put on them, with very little consideration for those who grow our food, manufacture our goods, truck and haul our goods and develop our natural resources.
Much of our nation's GDP is harnessed by those in rural Canada, but they are an afterthought when it comes to the policy decisions the current government is making. It promised for years to increase broadband access and Internet access in rural and remote areas, with very little headway being made. I still hear and receive phone calls all the time at our office from those who are frustrated with the lack of coverage, because, again, the government has not been proactive in addressing this.
We have to prioritize the needs of rural Canadians, because it was rural Canada that built this country, and it will be rural Canada that is key to our comeback. It is time their voices are heard and considered when it comes to aspects of our budget and economic security and viability.