Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Based on your comment, I would say that we would love to see the government put in place the service agreement with the railways, but that's a discussion for another day.
Thank you, all three witnesses, for your presentations. Really, very little was on the specifics of a trade agreement with Japan, but all three made a point that a number of us have been making for a while. It gets rather tiresome hearing the government talk about how many trade agreements they have signed. Basically, they've now signed another trade agreement, and you're on your own. At a time when we've seen our first trade deficit in 30 years, we need to see a net benefit to Canada from these agreements.
That goes to your point on imports and exports, Joy. I am intrigued by your comments on imports and exports, and I want to expand on them in a minute.
From our perspective on this side, the bottom line is this: What other strategic policies do we need that would allow us to add value in Canada and make the best of a trade agreement from a Canadian perspective?
I would turn to the railways first. One of your slides has the heading: “Will Canada be Ready for Success?” What are you talking about there? Is it infrastructure needs?
I was in Chicago recently at the CN switching yard. I was really intrigued that CN has spent $1 billion buying railways to move around Chicago, which really gives us good flow of product right down to the Mississippi now. What is needed from a federal government perspective that would make this success a greater possibility?