Thank you, Mr. Chair, and thank you very much to our witnesses.
Mr. Wiersema, I also agree you've had a distinguished career. I have had an opportunity to be here on this committee and to hear some of the reports that you and your team have put forward. I certainly do appreciate them.
I'm actually going to go to chapter 4 and deal with first nations.
Mr. Campbell, I know we will most likely be dealing with those things.
I spent some time on the aboriginal affairs committee, and I know many of the issues that were brought up in chapter 4 are things that have been talked about afterwards and are starting to be addressed. Certainly, as we recognized in the AG report, it's looking at what has happened in the past. I know Mrs. Fraser was looking back a number of years and saying there have to be some changes. Certainly as far as our government is concerned, the comments are important. We are trying to focus, though, on where we are going to go and on the forward working relationship we have with aboriginal people.
Again, I suppose, the feeling is there. I know on the committee there is a strong and ongoing commitment for improving the lives of aboriginals. There is progress that has been made: achievements in economic development, infrastructure, and education--I'm a former teacher, so I have a lot of interest in that area--as well as changes that have been occurring as far as water in communities is concerned, child and family services, other active measures, and associated land claim settlements. These are some of the things that are to take place, but as Mr. Wiersema was saying, there are these impediments there. Some of them, of course, are associated with how fast one can move on some of those particular issues. Part of it is that I would like a discussion on how you see those particular impediments and how we can improve that.
We know there has to be collaboration with first nations in order to move onwards on any of the types of projects we have. We agree to develop the implementation plans with other federal organizations. These are parts of the things we are looking at. I am specifically looking on page 44 at the recommendations we have in paragraph 4.86, where we speak about the plans, the specific goals, the targets, the action items, and the timelines for achieving results and indicators for measuring progress.
I am curious if perhaps you can speak to some of the implementation plans that are associated with the responses you see.