Good morning, ladies and gentlemen.
I have a question for Mr. Stothart from the mining industry. I read your statement with great interest. From your document, I understand how important the mining industry is to this country. I am aware of this because I am an engineer. In fact, my son worked at the Raglan mine in northern Quebec. I am therefore very aware of how important it is. However, I would like to talk about the environment. You have a chapter on the environment. You recognized that this is not an unimportant issue for the mining industry. I believe that the environmental consequences of mining are still very significant.
I had the opportunity to visit a gold mine in another country, namely Burkina Faso. The environment seems to have been well protected there, both the physical environment of the mine and the place where the population lives. However, the record of the Canadian mining industry abroad is not very good. This is why we introduced a bill which is being debated. You mentioned this a little earlier. Bill C-300 would regulate or impose environmental standards. We are trying to apply them here, but when we engage in mining activities abroad, it seems we forget them. I would like to hear what you think about Bill C-300. I think you do not support it. I would like to hear some good arguments for your position.