Thank you, Madam Chair.
Good afternoon, madam.
Good afternoon, gentlemen.
For four years, and again since the budget was tabled, I get the impression that I have been watching a demolition derby with CIDA as the prime target. Here we are with CIDA, whose role, in a sense, is to be a kind of Canadian Mother Teresa—my apologies if my analogy offends anyone—helping third world countries, countries that are experiencing extreme difficulties, to become developing countries, or, at least, to improve the standard of living of their people.
There are cuts of 25% in professional services, for example. No matter which department or agency, their strength lies in the expertise of those who make that expertise available in order to improve the lot of the people. Now we have to cut those professional services, and transportation and communication, which are all essential elements in providing assistance of any kind.
You will tell me that the effect on grants and contributions is minimal. But it is also the heart of the matter. The people who work for this department or that one make up the heart of that department. You can invest large amounts in equipment. But if you do not have the expertise to allow CIDA people to pass their knowledge to people in the field, so that they in turn can pass it on to their own people, you are going to run into serious difficulty.
How can you say, for example, that CIDA people can work at the level that the mandate demands when there are such major cuts?