Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I hope to be very quick, because I want to turn it over to my colleague Mr. Simms.
The issue, for my colleague Mr. Keddy, is not that we disagree with chapter 11 and the rules. We fully understand that you need to have them. The key is that with any legal action there is always opportunity to engage in negotiations beforehand.
So where was the federal government, in discussions with the provincial government and AbitibiBowater, in recognizing that there were opportunities to deal with the liabilities of Abitibi with regard to remediation, for example? Perhaps there was an opportunity. So instead of just cutting a cheque for $130 million after the fact, that federal money could have been used to address Abitibi's liabilities for remediation, and thus help the remediation process, not just the company.
My point was not a dispute with the issue of chapter 11 or the existence of the rules. I understand that completely. But if we can't do anything about this now, maybe we've learned that we need to be much more involved beforehand.
I think my colleague Mr. Julian has raised an interesting question about the applicability of chapter 11 and the nationality of different companies. I think that's worth looking at.
Mr. Simms.