Mr. Chair, I will be as brief as I can.
The EFTA will be a very important watershed for the evolution of Canada's trade relations over the next few decades. As the hon. member said, it creates immediate benefits. The amount of trade between the EFTA countries and Canada is actually quite substantial, something in the order of $14 billion in 2007. Direct investment between Canada and the EFTA countries is something like $28 billion.
It will provide a tremendous footprint for Canadian companies to get involved in the European market because the EFTA countries have free trade with the EU, and we will be there next.