Thank you very much, Mr. Chair, for having me at this committee.
I would also like to take this opportunity to thank you, since this may also be one of your last committee meetings as a politician. We have had the opportunity to serve the public together.
I am happy to be here this morning.
I also want to take this opportunity to thank Mr. Christopherson.
Mr. Christopherson, keep your passion, we need this. I hope that the newcomers who will follow you will have the same passion. This morning, you expressed your indignation to us and, basically, we are here to reflect it. I must say I share it too.
Mr. Ricard, you tell us that it is very difficult to reach the government by phone. You tell us that it's like a funnel, people hang up, calls are transferred to automated systems: it's a real obstacle course.
Finally, as my colleague said, the system does not seem to be designed to meet the needs. We know this because it is our offices that people ultimately call when they cannot reach a government agency. That is what is happening. Fortunately, sometimes we call and obtain a little service.
In my opinion, the problem seems to me to be a leadership problem. There are many call centres, but everyone works somewhat in isolation.
This is my first question. What do you think of the comments that were made this morning?
I would also like to hear from you about the feedback you have received as a result of the initiatives that are being taken. Some of them are very interesting.