Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Thank you, Mr. Minister, for being with us today. Again, welcome to the committee.
Minister, I want to commend you for your recent efforts to increase our trade presence in China. While we know that trade agreements can provide the framework opportunities to increase economic activities, as you have pointed out today, trade commission offices provide the real, on-the-ground services that help Canadian businesses realize that potential and actually often make the sales.
However, there are an increasing number of commentators, including the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, who point out that our trade commissioner's staff have been under-resourced over the past eight years. Cam Vidler, the director of international policy for the Canadian Chamber of Commerce told this committee two weeks ago, and I'll quote him:
The trade commissioner service is at the heart of Canada's economic diplomacy, and they need to have the resources and skills set to get the job done right. Despite rising service requests, budgets and staffing are at the same level as they were in 2007 and are set to stay flat for the foreseeable future.
Given the vital role that trade commissioners play in realizing our trade ambitions, Mr. Minister, can you tell this committee why they're not receiving increased resources from your government?