Finance committee  Maybe I misspoke because our student body is 15% international.

Finance committee  It's not 50%. We've planned a couple of things. One is that we acknowledge that they may not be able to get here physically until January, and the government is working with all universities around how we might start study permits for them in September in their home countries. Keeping in mind that a lot of the embassies and consulates around the world are closed at the moment, it's very complicated.

Finance committee  Thank you for the opportunity to be here today. On infrastructure, we know that university campuses from coast to coast—all the coasts—need to continue to build their infrastructure over time. You can't just let the place fall apart and become run down. There are going to be moments in the history of Canada when we make extraordinary infrastructure investments, and that's happened very successfully since I've been in Canada, via at least two governments of different political stripes.

Finance committee  I keep thinking there's a Nobel Prize in it for whatever team either figures out the vaccine or the cocktail of drugs that neutralizes the virus, as it may be. About a year ago—not even quite a year ago—we launched a new level three biohazard lab here at the university. Little did we suspect that only six months later it would be put to such use as it's being put to now, in terms of working on the vaccine.

Finance committee  Thank you, Mr. Easter. Good afternoon, everyone, and thank you for this opportunity to comment on the effects of the pandemic at Western and across our sector. I want to thank the Government of Canada for its leadership in responding to the pandemic, and I'd like to thank my local community for its extraordinary efforts.

Finance committee  First, I would say that across Canada the students were actually on this before the faculty and staff were, and they have often been the leaders in this work. Second, basic fundamental research on climate change has been going on for a long time. It is funded federally, as well as in other fashions such as private sector companies and whatnot.

Finance committee  It's more about the ways, the strategies and incentives we have to get things out the door. We need incentives to move people from the research they're doing in their labs to the marketplace. That has always been a gulf that needs to be closed.

Finance committee  Thank you.

Finance committee  Good afternoon, Mr. Chair and distinguished members of the Standing Committee on Finance. Thank you for the opportunity. From the perspective of Western University in London, I want to start by stating that we appreciated yesterday's presentation to this committee by the Honourable Ed Holder, London's mayor, and especially his focus on improving transportation to southwest Ontario.