Subcommittee on the Automotive Industry in Canada committee  Can I make a comment?

Subcommittee on the Automotive Industry in Canada committee  From the other side of this, the parts side, most of the parts people wouldn't get paid. In the U.S., anything over 20 days.... We're averaging 45 days, so 25 days goes out the window. I told you that two-thirds of our parts are sold mostly to the U.S., and half of our business in Canada is with General Motors.

Subcommittee on the Automotive Industry in Canada committee  I'm sorry, which one is this?

Subcommittee on the Automotive Industry in Canada committee  No, I have no idea. I know nothing about repairing cars; I'll admit it.

Subcommittee on the Automotive Industry in Canada committee  I can tell you that I have a number of members who are on short work weeks. They're taking advantage of the...I forget what the federal program is, but you work four days, and then on the fifth day you're laid off. I know there are probably 20 or 30 companies that are on short work weeks doing that.

Subcommittee on the Automotive Industry in Canada committee  Patient capital is simply capital that looks at this as a longer-term relationship. Right now the regular financial institutions are looking at your sales over the next six months, at whether they're inadequate. And they are inadequate; we're down 40% in production from what we normally are.

Subcommittee on the Automotive Industry in Canada committee  Well, under normal circumstances for BDC and EDC—because they do run their own accounts on commercial terms, so that goes on their financial statements—they can't normally take on weaker companies. The only way this can work is if the money comes from the Canada Account, and those are the funds that are for the account of the Canadian government; they do not go on the books of EDC.

Subcommittee on the Automotive Industry in Canada committee  For our industry it's absolutely essential. Without that money, we're going to have suppliers dropping like flies. There will be blood all over the floor. We need the money in the next couple of months, really. That is serious. I'm not trying to joke about this. I have lots of smaller suppliers who are at their wits end and out of money.

Subcommittee on the Automotive Industry in Canada committee  I think part of what I said is that the reality is, because the industry is so integrated, each one of our suppliers--certainly all of our major suppliers--supplies all of the major assemblers. One example that I wasn't able to hand out supplies everyone in North America. So if one of our major customers goes under, the chance of a couple of those major suppliers going under, and then the smaller suppliers, is pretty well inevitable.

Subcommittee on the Automotive Industry in Canada committee  I think the first thing to do is to pass the budget, because in the budget there is increased funding for EDC and for the Canada Account. We look to EDC and the government to use the Canada Account to be able to fund directly the parts suppliers who need money, those that are thinly capitalized now and don't at the moment meet the current financial criteria as they have done in the past.

Subcommittee on the Automotive Industry in Canada committee  It certainly has not been a concern. I have to say that we have been paid on time all the way through the financial crisis. Every second of the month, everyone has got the cheque they were supposed to get. We have no complaints. If they have the funds, they certainly have been paying.

Subcommittee on the Automotive Industry in Canada committee  I don't have a number now, but this week I've been working with Industry Canada to see if we can put a survey together to come up with some numbers for government. Because we have hundreds of members and hundreds of suppliers, it's very difficult to come up with a number. Usually the smaller the company the greater the liquidity problem.

Subcommittee on the Automotive Industry in Canada committee  Thank you. I have appeared before the full committee a few times and certainly have represented suppliers. We represent the suppliers for the assembly of new vehicles, so we are not related to the aftermarket problem. So don't ask me questions about aftermarket--I have no idea what's going on.

International Trade committee  I haven't noticed any difference in the two governments, and this is one of the few times I'd disagree with you, Jim. We've had difficulty, everyone seemed to want to move forward, and only the auto industry has really been screaming that this is not a good deal until non-tariff barriers have been eliminated.

International Trade committee  All of our political cohorts say that deal will not be ratified in the U.S.; it's simply not going to happen. And I'll live and die by my cohorts in the U.S.