Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Minister, it's reassuring to know that a lot of these programs that seem to be cut.... Page 8 of your estimates shows the overall portfolio spending going from $6.7 billion to $6.583 billion. But perhaps with some creative accounting and off balance sheet or off income statement presentation, you will reassure us when you write back that in fact emergency management and policing have not been cut back, that CSIS has received a larger increase than is evident here, that the department's community crime prevention programs have been augmented, and that the RCMP detachments in Quebec.... The money had been put into the budget for those, but this is not apparent from this sheet.
Minister, I'm absolutely amazed that my colleagues from the Bloc have not asked you about the reopening of RCMP detachments in Quebec, because I know they were really hot about this in the last Parliament.
Regarding the land border pre-clearance, I'd like to ask two questions. I think there were some pilots going on in Fort Erie and Buffalo. Under our government, there was a tacit understanding that we were to proceed. I'm told now that this has fallen apart. Maybe you could either confirm or deny that, and explain why.
Also under our government, we launched a very worthwhile initiative, called the fairness initiative, to bring the same transparency to the Canada Border Services Agency, particularly as it relates to Customs, as when Customs was part of the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency, where taxpayers had rights and responsibilities. People coming through our borders should have rights and responsibilities.
I know you've told me, Minister, that if anyone has a problem at the border, they should call you. I'm sure you're more fully briefed now, and I'd like to know, are you supporting that fairness initiative to give transparency and recourse at our border?