I'll just say, as a final word, a quote from the minister's mandate letter.
As Minister, you will be held accountable for our commitment to bring a different style of leadership to government. This will include: close collaboration with your colleagues; meaningful engagement with Opposition Members of Parliament, Parliamentary Committees and the public service;
Then on transparency:
We have also committed to set a higher bar for openness and transparency in government. It is time to shine more light on government to ensure it remains focused on the people it serves.
On the national strategy, if the government is going to do it, then why not say in legislation we are going to do it and impose on the government a requirement to report back to the people in coastal communities after the fact? You can't have it both ways. You can't campaign and keep doing press releases and re-update your website, but say no to making that same commitment. It is not duplicative. It's enshrining for transparency and accountability something that will last beyond this term of Parliament and beyond any of our service.
Other governments around the world have done it, and Canada would be stepping up into the modern marine age if you were to vote yes to this final amendment I've proposed.