I would characterize it as a continuation of funding, as opposed to an increase per se. The continuation of funding for three years—because this is a sunsetter program, and we have funding contingent for three years as per the supplementary estimates (C)—is a sign of the success of the work that is being done. Now, stakeholders are rightly impatient in terms of the pace, but I think the system is surprised with how productive the work has been.
I remember when it was announced in 2011, and everybody was paying attention to the Beyond the Border action plan because it had the kind of words that get headlines—“border security”, “economic competitiveness”—and “regulatory alignment” was, you know, a bit less sensational.
The very satisfying thing about the work that the RCC has done is that it has made a lot of progress on the initiative. The fact that departments in the Government of Canada such as Health Canada and Transport Canada are actually going to have senior public servants who will have, in their performance agreements every year, the requirement to deliver on the plans that are put together in negotiation with the United States means that we have an embedded commitment in the day-to-day lifeblood of what the government does in this regard.
I think that is really encouraging. At some point, the sunsetter program which supports PCO's work.... We coordinate all the departments together, and we coordinate the negotiations with our American counterparts. At some point, we are going to be a bit like Nanny McPhee, you know. Departments are going to get so good at this that they won't need us anymore. They will want us, but they won't need us anymore. I think that the feedback loop between industry and what their needs are can never go away. It's really important for that to stay robust and vibrant, always.