Mr. Chair, I would like to thank my hon. colleague for that great question and for drawing the attention of the House to the valuable and conscientious work of the Standing Committee on Natural Resources.
I would like to add my personal acknowledgement of the committee's reports and thank the members for their valuable contributions.
As members are aware, the global market for natural resources is changing rapidly and the vast simple volume was enough to exert our dominance in the world's commodity markets, but we know that it is no longer enough.
Today the emphasis is on value on innovative products produced in an environmentally sustainable manner. Meeting this challenge and seizing the opportunities it presents is a complex and demanding job. It requires all of us to work together at all government levels and within our academic and research communities, our industry associations and our research industries themselves. It also requires that we base our policy and program decisions on the best information and the best advice we can find.
I can assure the House that I view the Standing Committee on Natural Resources as one of the most important resources available to me and to the Government of Canada. I look forward to working closely with the committee in the months and years ahead.