Thank you Ms. Hall Findlay.
I just want to ask a couple of questions.
I want to quote from Professor Mintz's report, a statement that frankly surprises me. I think Mr. Benson and Mr. Georgetti would certainly support it, and I want to get comments from two of the others. The statement is that:
There remains, however, an important puzzle that is not explained by the research. Given that both pension plan and mutual fund active management performance seems no better than passive income performance on a persistent basis, it is unclear why managers engage in active management, given the costs involved. Uninformed individual investors and pension beneficiaries may not be able to determine whether active or passive strategies are better to pursue, but fund managers in competitive financial markets should advise pursuing more passive strategies. Perhaps, there is optimism that active management improves returns on savings, but the studies do not bear this out.
Now I have to say I was surprised by this statement, but I think we have to take it seriously, since Jack Mintz is a serious person. This is something I think both Mr. Georgetti and Mr. Benson have told this committee previously.
I want to get, from perhaps Mr. Charbonneau and Mr. Lefebvre, your reaction to this statement. Is this something, based on your experience, that is true what Mr. Mintz says here?