Thank you for the questions.
Indeed, I guess our strategy is “if it ain't broke, don't fix it”. Both FedNor and the EODP have been working well. Obviously, the EODP has been around for a shorter period of time, but as the honourable member knows, FedNor has been around for decades, delivering economic development programs for the north.
When I became minister responsible for FedNor in 2006, I was very pleased to announce that this program, for the first time in its existence, would have a base budget that it could guarantee, that it could rely on for five years running. That amount is $38.4 million, but indeed, there have been some add-ons to that budget over the years, for molecular medicine research, for instance, and a northern Ontario medical school.
Indeed, in this budget, there is an extra $13 million for this year and an extra $13 million for next year, which would bring the NODP budget, the northern Ontario development budget, to $52.77 million, which is the highest it's been under any government. That money is going to northern Ontario in 2009-10 and 2010-11 via the community adjustment fund. From our perspective, that program is working well and should continue to receive our support.
The terms and conditions of SODA, the Southern Ontario Development Agency, have not been finalized yet. There will be announcements in due course.