I would like to add that the dynamic that is being referred to at the moment—that of the private sector and wealthy potential donors—is occurring in favour of major fashionable disciplines. We talk a lot about MATES—mathematics, arts, technology, engineering and science. If this is the model we want to move toward, we are abandoning the smaller institutions that do not have the means to offer these types of programs or that do not offer them.
These institutions are unable to position themselves relative to the major players—in other words, the U15, the group of Canadian research universities. Examples include the Université de l'Ontario français, Université Sainte-Anne in Nova Scotia, the Collège communautaire du Nouveau-Brunswick and Collège Boréal in Ontario. These institutions are connected to their local industry and serve the needs of local SMEs. These SMEs will not be able to support research infrastructure in rural and isolated communities.
When Mr. Davidson says that we have to do more than one thing at a time, that's what it's about. Yes, we can count on funding for major research projects, major initiatives and major innovations. However, small local innovations will not be possible without extra government funding to support smaller institutions that have specific fields of research and expertise and that meet local needs that no one else is meeting.
At the Université Sainte-Anne, for example, an entire research team has developed on the lobster fishery. If the Université Sainte-Anne does not do so, the University of Toronto or the University of Alberta will certainly not be meeting the local needs of Acadian fishers in Nova Scotia. A diverse research infrastructure is needed.