I would say that consultations constituted probably the largest part of my job during the negotiations. I spent far more time consulting than I did negotiating.
We had a structure for the first time in CETA, given the scale of it, that was even larger than we had for NAFTA 20 years ago. I had a core steering group I consulted with that represented national organizations. I had a group of about 50 to 75 businesses, selected for different reasons, that I informed regularly about the negotiations. We also had sector-specific groups, whether for autos, agriculture, or fish and seafood, to go into more detail on specific requirements. Even textiles and apparel and others had specific groups to consult with. Then we had consultation at the provincial and territorial level as well, and they did their own consultations in turn.
I would say without hesitation that in this negotiation, we consulted more broadly and more intensively than in any other negotiation we've ever done.