Thank you for coming this morning, and for your contribution.
As I've done with the first two panels, I extend my apologies on behalf of Libby Davies, who wanted to be here today to ask questions and show her support. She's in Ottawa, as are many other members of the committee who normally travel and are part of this very important work. They have been participating very actively and constructively to try to find something that we could all sign onto in the end and deliver it to the government, and challenge government to act on. We're looking at the federal role in a national anti-poverty strategy, of course in partnership with the provinces, territories, municipalities, first nations, and all the good community efforts that are happening out there.
We've heard a number of things here today that we heard down east in the spring and in Ottawa. Certainly housing is a huge issue. Income security is another huge issue. In terms of trying to figure out how we engage government in actually doing something on some of these things that would be substantial, I like the comment, Darryl, that you quoted from Dr. Butler-Jones: society is only as healthy as its least healthy members.
I was in Finland a few years ago, where there is the concept of social welfare is the welfare of society. If society is well, then it works better for everybody. I think we have to get our heads around that and begin to think in that way.
The other thing we've heard here today that was different, in my experience, is this whole question of our first nations and the impact of the decline of the salmon fishery on your communities. I heard Jean and others, such as Peter Julian, talk about it, but never in the same way that I heard it here this morning. For me, anyway, we'll be bringing that back and hoping that we can get some immediate movement on it.
It's been suggested by some that a guaranteed annual income, a basic income, would be one thing we could put in place that would lift everybody. Are there any thoughts on that?