Thank you for the opportunity to talk about this. What happens now is that CBSA has done a tremendous amount of work putting in place electronic data reporting systems, but they have no mandate. Even though many other government departments require information when you cross the border--dangerous goods, agricultural goods, there are lots of different reasons government agencies feel they need to collect information at the border--the CBSA has no authority to tell the other government departments they have to use the single window. It's entirely up to that minister and where it falls in that department's priorities. It's important for the economy as a whole, but it has continually fallen down below the level of getting the proper funding inside the other government departments.
We've had briefings from the other government departments. They're looking at it, they'd like to do it, but if they're going to do it they have to change the entire back end of their system, and this will take years and millions of dollars. There are lots and lots of reasons they can't do it, when in fact it is absolutely essential that somebody in the centre pull all these guys together and tell them it's now become a priority and they need to get it done.