Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
The Icelandic and Norwegian components of the free trade agreement, particularly the Norwegian one, are of some concern to me, even although Iceland is a very small country. Allow me to give you a few examples. Norway probably invests more in research and development than does any other industrialized country. I do not know whether you have any data on the subject, but I know that Norway currently heavily subsidizes research and development and invests huge amounts of money in the sector. Indeed, its target for research and development is 5 to 6%t of investments, whereas Canada's stands at around 2.2 to 2.3%. Furthermore, our sector receives little in the way of government subsidies. That is my first concern.
My second concern relates to Iceland. Iceland is, of course, a small country. I have been there and seen its ships for myself. Iceland's waters are protected primarily by Norway, as its own ships are too small and larger ones cannot be obtained. Let me give you an example. Iceland has an outstanding climate for manufacturing aluminum. Alcan has premises there. At the moment, Canada cannot compete with Iceland in terms of manufacturing aluminum. That is very clear and everyone here knows it. I do not understand why nobody thought about how this would affect Alcan or other aluminum manufacturing companies, such as Reynolds and Alcoa. Ms. Todgham, you told us that the protection afforded to the sector is second to none and that the only sector with a significantly longer phase-out period is shipbuilding. However, the Norwegians have already started to invest here in Canada, particularly in Quebec. As you know, the Norwegians bought the MIL Davie shipbuilding yard. They have substantial contracts here.
I would like you to tell me whether I understand the situation properly. My understanding is that only the shipbuilding yards have any real protection. You implied that there is no protection for other sectors. Then there is the issue of the forestry sector. Forestry management in Norway cannot be compared to what we do here in Canada. It has to be recognized that there are huge differences in the approaches adopted by the two countries, and that the Norwegians compete fiercely with Canada in the softwood lumber and finished forest products sectors. Those are the key elements of my question.
Would you like to comment, Mr. Haynal? I understand that the agreement might be in Bombardier's interests, as you are already established in Norway and are able to sell your products given that the Norwegians are perhaps a little less advanced in your sector than they are in others. However, that is no guarantee that in 5, 10 or 15 years' time they will not have surpassed you.