All right. In a sense we've gone to the 30,000-foot level with Mr. Hasbrouck's suggestion of international negotiations around some sort of a binding treaty with binding guarantees in it. I want to come back down to ground level again about what Bill C-42 is.
First of all, it's a technical amendment to ensure Canadians don't face any undue delays with respect to their travel plans. I will remind you that we've had a lot of talk about how there should be negotiations. I have to remind those who are listening today, and perhaps our witnesses as well, that Bill C-42 actually follows a process of negotiations that has been ongoing with the United States since 2008. The minister testified before this committee, for example, that we did obtain an exemption with respect to the final rule for overflights that originate domestically in Canada, fly over U.S. airspace, and then land in Canada, so we have had some negotiation with the United States. The decision with respect to bringing in Bill C-42 was based on the reality that those negotiations were not going to produce an exemption for international overflights, and we are facing additionally the implementation deadline at the end of this calendar year. That may represent to some a bit of a Hobson's choice, but it is a reality nonetheless.
I want to get Mr. Lennox onto the record just a little bit.
We've had a lot of discussion over here on the issues of privacy. I want to come to the GTAA and its place and position with respect to the economy. We've just come through a very difficult global recession. You may want to talk about the impact to airports, airlines, and tourism industries as well as about the recovery. We have heard some good news with respect to Air Transat recalling 110 employees, for example, but the economic recovery is fragile. There is competition from U.S. airports. Can you talk about the context, economically, for your industry?