Mr. Chair, again, this first meeting is to establish the ground rules for how we're going to work with each other. I think Madame Lavallée is under the misunderstanding that she cannot discuss future business without a motion. If we have to have motions with 48 hours' notice to discuss how we're going to work together, then this committee will never work.
I was actually thinking we were going to sit down today and hear from people about their ideas, because what we need in this committee is a long-term vision. We have short-term issues, but there are key elements on which we as a committee can agree to work together. If we have to cancel the meeting now and walk out of here so that we walk back in on Wednesday at 3:30 and agree to this motion, so be it, but it sets a really bad precedent in terms of how we are going to work on future issues. We then should sit down and say, so what is it we need to do? Well, so-and-so would like to look at this, or how about this? We have done that on every substantive piece of work that this committee has done.
Mr. Chair, I'll back you up 100%. I'll be damned if this committee is going to be reduced to the dysfunction I've seen in other committees. If we cannot work on some basic goodwill and trust, we are wasting the taxpayers' money. I would like us to deal with this now, but if we have to, then I'd say let's leave now and come back at 3:30 on Wednesday, vote to have the minister come, and then from there on in we'll just have to piece it as we go along.