Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
On page 22, you refer to the reduction in the growth of energy demand. Correct me if I am wrong, but I think that the growth in energy demand in Canada is approximately 1% per year, and that of electricity is much lower.
You refer to a 55% drop in the growth in energy demand. That represents 55% of 0.75%, which is very, very little. We aren't reducing energy consumption, we are only talking about reducing growth in demand.
You are quite timid and reserved insofar as energy savings as a whole are concerned. For instance, you talk about 5% with regard to ventilation and air conditioning and 27% for buildings as a whole.
The Royal Architectural Institute of Canada, which is well known and made up of responsible persons, has just created a program for which it is in fact asking for government support. It takes as a premise that building, are the main producers of greenhouse gases in Canada. The institute wants to see reductions of 50% by 2010, 60% by 2020, 70% by 2030, 90% by 2040 and 100% by 2050. I don't see this reflected here.
The minister announced the construction of ten zero-consumption energy-efficient model homes. He could have announced that they would build 1,000 or 10,000, because homes that consume 50% or even up to 75% less energy have been around for 20 years.
You, the government advisors, seem so timid and reserved to me that we can't seem to make any headway. Why did you ask Marbek Resource Consultants and M.K. Jaccard & Associates, who are very conservative, to print this announcement?