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Dec/1/21 11:14:15 p.m.
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Madam Chair, I will be frank. In the House, I often hear the phrase “team Canada” and the idea that we should should be working as team Canada. I am not particularly interested in team Canada, and I will tell you why. Canada has two main economic sectors: the oil industry and the automotive industry. The federal government is totally absent when it comes to softwood lumber. Today we have heard about negotiating international treaties and about our relationship with the United States. That is one of the problems, but there has never been any serious negotiating, and I have some simple proof of that. Quebec once again had some issues with the federal government during CUSMA negotiations because the aluminum industry was not protected. Canada's chief negotiator appeared before the Standing Committee on Natural Resources and I asked him a question about the forestry industry. He replied that the forestry industry was not a priority for him at that time. In 2006, I heard a bunch of people bragging about a deal that had been signed. However, if we talk to people in the industry about that, they are furious because, in 2006, they lost $1 billion. It was a sellout deal. That is one of the problems in the forestry sector. We are too dependent on the United States and, unfortunately, we do not have a government that is prepared to do economic battle with the United States, which means that the sector is left out. That has been proven tonight, over and over again. The other big issue is the secondary and tertiary processing sector. There are some federal programs to support it. We have the notorious IFIT, for example, a program that aims to transform the forestry industry. As we all know, we no longer consume as much paper, and the pulp and paper industry needs to pivot somehow. Year after year, there are more applications to IFIT than the program can provide in capital. People in the sector have come to me and said that they no longer even bother applying to IFIT because they know they will be turned down. The funding power that the federal government is putting into supporting the transformation of the sector is pitiful. Anyone in the sector can tell us that. There is another program that supports softwood lumber exports. Quebec is the largest player in Canada's forestry sector, yet 80% of the budget is earmarked for British Columbia. Members will understand why talk of Team Canada leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Here is another basic fact. As we know, many sawmills in Quebec are coming to the end of their useful life. Given today's labour shortage, sawmills that are not automated are unable to survive. If these people applied for help from Canada Economic Development, they would get nothing. Why? It is because Canada Economic Development refers them to Global Affairs Canada, which would tell them that it unfortunately cannot support them because that would go against international trade treaties. Once again, this activity sector is receiving absolutely nothing from the federal government. To add insult to injury, the forestry sector is probably the most promising sector when it comes to tackling climate change. The investment in the forestry industry in Quebec is just $71 million a year. However, 75% of that is provided in the form of loans, which means that around $17 million is actually invested in the forestry industry. My region of Saguenay—Lac‑Saint‑Jean brings in $81 million a year for the federal government. What is even more insulting is that year after year, the oil and gas industry is given around $14 billion. That is something to be pissed off about, as my father would say.

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The Assistant Deputy Chair

Dec/1/21 11:18:25 p.m.
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It being 11:18 p.m., pursuant to Standing Order 53(1), the committee will now rise.

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The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès)

Dec/1/21 11:18:53 p.m.
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The House stands adjourned until tomorrow at 10 a.m. pursuant to Standing Order 24(1). (The House adjourned at 11:18 p.m.)

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