I'm wondering, Mr. Chair, if there's some way for us to have more informed discussion than we have the capacity for today.
What I'm referring to is the idea of giving some instructions, whatever they may be, to our assistants and for them to come back and give us an idea of what this would look like, what we could possibly get into, and what would be involved. Because of the very positive work that has been done within the province of Quebec by the Quebec government and because of the interest of the people within Quebec, I have a feeling there may be an understanding different from that of somebody from British Columbia as to what these words on this paper mean.
Here's the difficulty I'm having right off the bat. Mr. Chong has raised a very interesting point. Suppose a person has an income level of $12,000--just so we're talking about a number--and they're not an artist or would not classify themselves as an artist, but someone else, by whatever definition, may classify themselves as an artist. Would they be wise to find some way to get on the gravy train and make sure they are classified as an artist so that they can get whatever the advantages are? The fact is that $12,000 is $12,000. It's stuff like that that I don't understand.
For example, my wife and I happen to have very dear friends who.... The woman is a very accomplished potter and world-renowned, but without the support of her partner, she wouldn't be able to do that. How does that all fit?
I would like to understand what we're looking at before going ahead or even having this discussion we're attempting to have today. Certainly I will admit that I will not necessarily be able to make an informed decision, yes or no, on this particular question. I want to know what this looks like and what the possibilities are.