Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I would also like to take a moment to thank Minister Guilbeault, Minister Lametti and the department representatives from Heritage and Justice for joining us today in this important meeting.
Mr. Lametti, I'm very glad you're here. I have to say that I was worried when you initially chose not to testify at this committee. I was, of course, deeply concerned that your absence would cause continued delay and would continue to impede our work on creating good broadcasting legislation, so thank you for taking the time to be with us here today.
Mr. Lametti, some experts have stated that your latest update on the charter statement is very fragile, as it is more a political document to protect the mistakes of your government than a legal analysis, so, of course, by your declining the initial invitation, we felt that you were reinforcing this concern and the fears about threats to the freedom of expression. Again, thank you for making the time to be here with us today.
I have a series of questions for you, if you don't mind. First of all, I'd like to know if you can identify the sections of the bill that are intended to protect the charter principles. Could you identify clearly those provisions that are intended to protect the charter principles?