On the same point, Mr. Chair, if I might, it's generally accepted that it is more advantageous for a witness to appear in person. I've even heard witnesses complain that they face a geographic bias and if you're from Toronto, Montreal, or Ottawa you can probably appear in person and make your case to a parliamentary committee with all the flourish that appearing in person affords itself, but if you're from Kelowna or Winnipeg or somewhere like Whitehorse, Yukon, it's more expensive and therefore committees are more reluctant to allow those people to come in person.
I don't think we should make the cost factor the determining factor. If a person is not able to attend in person then by all means we default to the electronic communication, but there is no substitute for appearing in person and making your case face-to-face with parliamentarians, in my view.
As a western Canadian, I feel strongly that people shouldn't be precluded the opportunity to come in person just because we've spent millions of dollars on an electronic service.