Mr. Speaker, the government has made a commitment to help Canadian publishers with a program, the costs of which, I might point out, are unknown even to it. The government contends that it has the assurance of the Americans that they would not contest this policy under NAFTA, the WTO or American trade legislation.
My question is for the Minister of National Defence, who seems to be the closest to this matter. Can he tell us under what legal principle the American government would not be obliged to submit to WTO or NAFTA regulatory authorities any complaints from American publishers who felt that their rights were being infringed upon by Bill C-55?