I think, to be honest, that it's all of the above. They have taken steps to simplify the process. They have taken steps, particularly during COVID.
There was a unique opportunity to work closely with provincial and municipal entities to engage in bulk buying. That created some economic synergies across procurement that I had hoped would continue beyond the COVID dynamic. There's still work going on in that area, and documentation is made available to provincial colleagues so that they can use federal templates. I know that there has been significant work on simplification.
However, again, the work that's been done is insufficient. It's not to comment on the intention, but if you pick up a solicitation document.... I'm a lawyer and I've been in this space for over 20 years, and I find it incredibly cumbersome and difficult sometimes to understand what I'm being asked to look at or do, and I'm someone who should know. Imagine if you were a small or medium-sized business.
The one thing I will say is that the inclusion of Procurement Assistance Canada is a significant step in the right direction. They essentially provide the opportunity to work one on one with small and medium-sized suppliers and help guide them through the process. That, in and of itself, is not simplification; that's an acknowledgement that the system is too complex and that you need this additional measure to guide them. The answer is to fix the system.