Thank you for the question on the issue of modernizing the border. I think it's an important one, and I think Friday's declaration by the two governments is going to be a step that's going to help us achieve some of the things we need to do to accelerate economic competitiveness, jobs, and growth.
It's important to note as you head down to Washington that the border relationship has evolved over a whole number of years. We've been discussing ways with our partners in the United States on how to keep and operate an efficient border, maintaining the flow of goods and services and people while keeping threats away from the border.
You'll recall that on 9/11 there was a serious attack on the United States. It affected Canada also, and the U.S. began a much more security-focused approach to managing the border. The government of the day then worked with the United States to come up with the “smart border” plan, which addressed some of the security issues and began programs such as “trusted traveler”, which helped to accelerate folks through the border.
Now we've come to a point where we have a willing partner on the other side of the border, the United States, which wants to discuss further the economic aspects of the relationship and how we might manage the border.
The declarations contained some of the areas that will be looked at, such as infrastructure and improving the traffic flows between Canada and the United States. There's the matter of expanding some of these programs, like “trusted traveler”, ensuring that legitimate people and the flow and goods of services keep moving. It's extremely important to our economic competitiveness.
It's a first step in a process, a dialogue. We'll have an excellent opportunity to sit down with the United States and work through these various issues and improvements.