Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Good afternoon to all the witnesses. Good afternoon, Mr. Ferro, in Colombia.
I have a first question for Mr. Casey. Mr. Casey, I was somewhat surprised to hear you say that the Free Trade Agreement between Canada and the Republic of Colombia would eventually make it possible to increase... In any case, that agreement seems to be important to you.
I'm going to set that alongside something else. Last week, I attended a meeting for the États généraux du bois dans la construction, which is organized by the Conseil de l'industrie forestière du Québec. Moreover, my colleague Mr. Guimond was there as well. We heard a number of speakers, and we attended conferences for most of the day.
Light was shed on aspects that must be addressed in order to increase productivity. Never was there any talk of a free trade agreement with Colombia. No one ever mentioned such an agreement, which is so unimportant for the development of the forest industry. Many other countries are much more important from a market standpoint. We talked about research and development, fibre-cutting methods, cutting methods and especially loan guarantees—which the Conservative government is till denying us. That's what will save the forest industry. You're telling us that this Free Trade Agreement between Canada and the Republic of Colombia will save us. I find that completely incongruous.