I guess that's the point. Where we are right now is this bill and I have concerns with the critique that if we were to bring this forward, somehow we'd actually be going backwards. I don't buy it. I don't see it from your presentation. I don't see how you can provide evidence on something that hasn't actually been brought into force.
You've looked through the bill. Certainly we've heard from people who say that it's not fair-minded and it would undermine.... But when we've had those folks come forward and say there would be a problem, we've also had other folks who say, in their legal opinion, it wouldn't. The point is that we are seized with it now, and for many of us--and I think for Canadians and Canadian companies--the time is now.
And to see this opportunity depart brings concerns that nothing is going to happen, frankly, because the government has brought forward a counsellor.... And I just have a couple of things on that. The counsellor isn't even set up to take in any concerns at this point. You know the process, right? She can take it in, but it takes two to dance. If the company says it doesn't want to take part, it doesn't have to. You're aware of that. So I don't see that as being helpful, and I think you'd probably be of the same mindset. If you're going to have a process, you must have a process.
Finally, on EDC, when we've asked.... I've asked at the committee and I've asked them in meetings if there has been one instance, just one instance, where they have investigated and found there were concerns among their partners, where they've actually said “you'd better do something or we're going to withdraw”, or where they've actually removed the funding. There were none, so apparently we don't have any problems and this is all some sort of weird conspiracy. I don't think you believe that, because you've intimated that there are some concerns and we need to deal with them.
Mr. Dade, if it's not this--and you've put forward what you think it should it be--isn't it possible to actually have a process that would conform with the general architecture we're talking about? You have concerns about BillC-300. Fine. But what about using this opportunity and this infrastructure to actually change it to adopt those principles you mentioned, to have EDC in the game, and to make sure that when Canadian companies go abroad, there isn't controversy?
Frankly, I think we're entering a time where litigation is happening anyhow. If we don't do something, we're going to be like big tobacco was, really. That's happening. It's already happening. You see it. Do you not see an opportunity here to actually take Bill C-300 and frame the architecture such that it would be helpful?