I would like to continue for the committee's benefit and for mine.
You told the committee that, in 1999, your consulting firm received a contract from Fisheries and Oceans Canada for about $25,000. You prepared a report in which you made no recommendations. You also told the committee that you did not travel, that you did not go and see the state of harbour infrastructure in the countries mentioned, their level of management and how they run their small craft harbours. As I understand it, everything was done by telephone, and the report then reflected your telephone conversations.
Here is the question that concerns me. At that time, in 1999, what was Fisheries and Oceans Canada`s interest in having a telephone survey done to find out about small craft harbours in other countries? Could an official from the department not have done the same work? I have a hard time understanding that. I was sure that you had visited those places and that you had met people there, because in your presentation you mentioned that you had been impressed by officials and by harbour managers. I had the impression that, as a reputable company mandated to see what was happening in other countries, you would have gone to them.
Mr. Chair, I see that this is absolutely not what we were expecting this morning. Personally, I expected that the company had gone overseas to observe, but now I see that this was done by telephone. That takes away a lot of the report's credibility; in terms of this committee's work, we can take it or leave it.