Mr. Speaker, as I outlined in my response, the Minister of Foreign Affairs met with the Chinese officials and Chinese foreign affairs only last week at the United Nations. We have been actively involved in this case from the moment it was brought to our attention.
Repeated representations have been made and continue to be made on a regular basis to the Chinese authorities for Mr. Celil's safety and security and to bring about a positive outcome.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs has been involved in this case from the beginning and he will continue to be.
Privacy concerns do not allow us to discuss the specifics of individual consular cases. Communications between sovereign states are confidential and we do not release this information, but I want to assure the member for Mississauga South that even I have met with the Chinese ambassador. I do not agree with his assessment that relationships with China are not on a sound footing.
As a matter of fact, relationships with China are very strong because we have a strong friendship. We continue making these representations. We have a lot of channels through which we can communicate with the Government of China and we have been doing so.