Mr. Speaker, my hon. friend is correct in saying that parliament in its wisdom or lack thereof in 1996, when it passed the Canada Transportation Act, took away the merger review provisions that were previously in the National Transportation Act, 1987.
This was somewhat controversial as the hon. member will know if he reads Hansard from those times. That is why there was specifically a clause included in that bill to have the act reviewed within five years.
I have named a panel of five prominent people who are looking into the act and I have specifically mentioned coming up with a strategy on rail mergers.