As you know, there are a number of different dialogues that are happening around the world. Canada participates with the G-8. Our chair went to that meeting, the Gleneagles dialogue on climate change. There's also the Asia-Pacific Partnership. One of the interesting things about the Asia-Pacific Partnership is that there are members in the partnership that have taken on, whether they be voluntary or not, some targets for reductions of both air pollution and greenhouse gases, or have shown promise to do that. Those are countries like China, whose environmental record obviously many people around the world are increasingly concerned about.
What we're seeing from countries like China under the Asia-Pacific Partnership is there's a willingness to come to the table as an equal, which is not the case in the Kyoto Protocol. I think the important thing for Canada to do is to leave the door open and to participate in as many international dialogues as we can so that we can obviously show Canadians that we're actively pursuing the promotion of these kinds of dialogues, but also encouraging our international partners to take on more effective action. Canada has a very onerous target. We know that. It would cost us billions and billions of dollars and international credits to meet that target. But we clearly stated to the international community that we're on-board, that we are working towards getting in place a framework that will show clear domestic action, which will align us with our international partners, and align us with our international policy so that we aren't where we were when we took over, which is at 1% closer to our Kyoto target. After thirteen years, and years after signing the Kyoto Protocol, that's unacceptable to Canadians.
I hope this committee and Canadians start to focus on the debate that needs to be had in this country, which is what is achievable for Canada, put in place a new Kyoto framework, set emissions reduction targets pronto, as soon as we can, and have that honest dialogue with industry about the important reductions they need to make. I think they're ready for that. They're willing to be at the table to do that. We need to work as a Parliament to make sure we show that we have unity on this issue; otherwise industry will get the best of us, and they will divide and conquer us, and we will end up in the same place we were for the last however many years, without any new targets and without any action to reduce greenhouse gases.