Mr. Speaker, over the summer I had a chance to hold a round table within my riding, where I had the opportunity to talk with small business owners and medium-sized business owners and really hear what mattered to them. One of the things they brought up was the obstacles in their way with respect to trade.
I also took the opportunity to look at a study that was done across Canada by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce. There was a survey that was completed, and again, this was one of their top barriers with respect to generating capital and creating jobs.
I would like the hon. member to comment on how the TPP might actually help solve this problem. Specifically, I am interested in my context, where Lethbridge, Alberta, is a fairly rural area, largely agrarian in nature or agriculture-based. How would the TPP go about facilitating further developments and business capital within our region?