I may, Mr. Chair. I promise I'll keep you posted.
Thank you very much for taking the time to appear before us today and for all the hard work you do on behalf of artists and culture in this country. We appreciate it a great deal.
One of the points in contention that we make on this side is that we have put a lot of money behind artists, that we are supporting touring, are supporting artists abroad, and are supporting the arts domestically. You already indicated, for example, that PromArt has nothing to do with the Department of Canadian Heritage, and I appreciate that.
Trade Routes was a model for funding artists abroad, but the Canada Council is also supporting artists abroad through a number of programs that they have. Perhaps you can touch on the additional money we have provided to the Canada Council. And secondly, can you talk a little bit about how the Canada Council is supporting artists abroad?