Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Gentlemen, I'd like to thank you for your presentations. As always, they are very concise and factual.
There are a couple of things I'd like to get your opinion on. First of all, even the socialists can agree that we're in the middle of an economic struggle. Not only our nation but other nations around the world are seeking new ways to improve their economies. Trade agreements are right at the top of the list. They're wanting to go into markets they've never been in before, because they're trying to use every tool available to them to recover their economies.
It seems to me that the view of the NDP is inconsistent with the reality of the global economy and the challenges it faces. Their view is that Canada should simply step out of the lineup of free trade because of their ideological reasoning and allow the other countries to go in, gobble up the trade agreements, and get themselves well established. Then some day down the line we would limp back into that lineup and try to recover something we would have had in the first instance. I think we certainly would be missing a huge opportunity.
I'm trying to find some realism in the arguments across the way there. It appears to me that this point of view seeks to simply cut Colombia off, cast them adrift with their problems, and tell them to fend for themselves. Canada will go to countries that fit more with our values.
Somewhere there are countries that had the same struggles, or similar ones. We've engaged them in trade agreements and bilateral agreements of every type, and we've actually been able to help them because of our presence and the very presence of those agreements.
I would think that if the folks across the room are seeking to try to help Colombia with some of those human rights problems and democratic problems they are concerned about, it would be in their best interest to encourage an agreement whereby Canada can establish a solid agreement relationship with that country and be talking to them on an ongoing basis. Surely some of the values we hold dear in this country are going to be passed on through discussions on those agreements. That way we will be assisting them out of their challenges.
I just throw that out, because it seems to me that we have an opportunity not only to help our producers, manufacturers, and suppliers of goods and services, but in this case, Colombia. We would not only be able to help them with their economy through trade, but the very association, which would be bound by an agreement, would be a good opportunity for us to fit the other things in with all our other discussions.