I would say a few quick things. The first is that the solidity of our banking system has made our institutions globally well known. As well, our insurance services providers have used the last few years to acquire assets that were either nationalized or in distress. They are bringing to Europe that strong Canadian brand— strong regulatory and public governance systems, along with dynamic products and a reputation for excellent customer service.
I would say Canada is strong in engineering services. We think our internal accreditation of engineering services across Canada, our high engineering standards, will help us to take advantage of our capacity in clean tech, in oil and gas, and in other energy services in future work within the European Union.
I can't resist taking a moment to comment on your question about generics. First of all, intellectual property provisions are a policy to drive innovation, not contain costs. If you're looking at cost containment, look to provincial cost containment, bulk purchasing, but also look to the Patented Medicine Prices Review Board. Somehow the European Union has managed to have these intellectual property protections in place, while spending less than Canada on drugs, as a percentage of GDP. So how the European Union has managed drug prices is something for us to look at.
Second, to have a healthy generic industry, you have to have patented medicines to copy. We want to create a strong and vibrant R and D and innovative continuum here in Canada. Let's focus on health outcomes. Drugs help Canadians feel better. Innovations create new therapies that keep Canadians in work, keep Canadians healthy, and keep Canadians active. I encourage the committee not to lose sight of the big picture of innovation and health outcomes when considering the balance between IP protection and our important generic industry, which is also a significant employer in Canada.