Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
First of all, I want to welcome the witnesses and thank them for their contribution.
I especially want to welcome Mr. Goodfellow. Please accept my apologies, I had not recognized you earlier, probably because I was distracted. I went to your conference last fall where I was very well received.
One rarely hears such a clear, concise and concrete presentation. I thank you for that and I also want to thank the chairman for allowing you to go over five minutes. Time constraints frequently prevent us from fully stating our case but I think it was very worthwhile for us to hear you completely.
I want to start with Ms. White's conclusion who said that no one in Canada should have to live in poverty. That sentence means two things. First, we could make sure that people are able to live with dignity because it is up to us to make the right decisions. Ms. Macquarrie has neatly summarized the situation by referring to it being a matter of political will.
I believe you were the one to refer to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities that was passed by the General Assembly in December 2006. Canada had approved the Convention but the Canadian government--I am not saying Canada--has not yet ratified it.
I would like to hear the witnesses about this. Do you understand the reasoning of the Canadian government? I know that this is a very significant matter for you, quite properly, but do you know why our government has not yet ratified that instrument?