Thank you.
I want to thank all presenters for really hammering home the point that the role of this fund is contrary to the minister's assertion when he said it was a fund that existed for people who had “no interest in developing any kind of commercial opportunities”. I'm seeing from what you're saying that it's a clear jump-off point.
Then we have the issue of consultation. Now, I've read the summative evaluation of the Canada music fund, and there certainly was consultation. What surprised me was the direction they took out of that, of taking the money and giving it to FACTOR, because I didn't really see that recommendation anywhere in there. The summative evaluation was done in October 2007. It's available on the Heritage Canada website. On page 155, they identify the expert panel that made the recommendations. It includes Rob Braide, vice-president of CHOM FM, which is Astral Media; David Kusek, Berklee Media, from Boston, Massachusetts; Pierre Rodrigue, from Astral Media Radio, Montreal.
So two of the three represent Astral Media in one media market. Do any of you work with them on a regular basis? Do you know why they would have such a primary role, 66% of the evaluation advice being given by two men representing the same company in the same city?