Mr. Speaker, I listened to my colleague's speech with considerable interest. I have to say he is one of the members—if not the member—most familiar with the Competition Act. Indeed, he may be very surprised by the position of the Minister of Natural Resources, who seemed unaware of the matter of amendments to the Competition Act, for example. They were proposed following the latest rise in gas prices and were on the verge of being adopted. It would have meant the granting of a general investigative power, which would have made it possible to take another approach besides presenting proof of collusion. This then was another interesting point.
There is also the fact that the petroleum industry supported the establishment of the petroleum monitoring agency. That must be remembered. The oil industry approves this agency, because it wants to move out of the endless debate it is caught in.
On the matter of tax, I look at the oil companies' profits. This is an area that involves natural resources. The product is not invented. It is found in the ground of Canada. On after tax profits of $27 billion for the years 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005 would a $500 million surtax not be the minimum to require of this industry by way of effort? At the moment, its profits are absolutely incredible and, in my opinion, it does not contribute enough to the distribution of wealth. The government's actions must aim for this goal.