Finance committee  One, it reduces costs; two, it builds trust; and three, it creates new opportunities. These are all good things for Canada.

Finance committee  I'm more concerned with the size of the trade than the number, but yes.

Finance committee  Certainly. We have the Regulatory Cooperation Council with the United States. We also have the Beyond the Border plan, with some very significant pilots that we'd like to see made permanent to facilitate trade. A number of members of the committee have talked about the importance of infrastructure for expanding trade, and we would agree with that wholeheartedly.

Finance committee  Absolutely. The NAFTA agreement, if you take a close look it, has not been updated in 20 years. It's based on, one could say, a very bureaucratic process of defining occupations. There are occupations from that list that existed 20 years ago that of course no longer exist, and new occupations that I can't even think of that my children will have the opportunity to apply to.

Finance committee  I have no particular expertise in marijuana growth or consumption and therefore cannot comment—with respect.

Finance committee  I'm not aware that any of our members are producers or consumers.

Finance committee  I'll leave it to you, Mr. Brison.

Finance committee  I think what I would say very clearly is that the right partners and the right products are very important. So I commend this House for the strong bipartisan support we've seen for improving the NAFTA relationship and for, I believe, the almost violent agreement, I might say, in welcoming the EU, which has a strong social safety net, respect for workers, and also an incredibly diverse market for our products.

Finance committee  Gentlemen and a lady.

Finance committee  The Canadian Council of Chief Executives firmly stands behind the most liberal and sensible visa regime possible. It's very important that we differentiate between types of travellers. Perhaps a more granular approach to some of the visa issues we've been having may be a way to answer security concerns that have been stated by this government, but also, frankly, to keep our eye on the bigger picture, which is the economic activity between our two countries.

Finance committee  On that, I would first and foremost say that investment is a leading indicator of success we will have in trade. We are already a very high-level source, after the U.S. The U.K. and France were very heavily invested in Canada, in terms of foreign direct investment stocks, but there are huge opportunities there for partnerships, particularly building on Peggy Nash's question, I would say, with the innovation leaders of Germany and Scandinavia, where partnerships between our research universities, our small and medium-sized enterprises, and large multinational firms that will land global mandates and then choose to locate them in Canada to supply the North American market and even the market of the Americas I think are an integral part of how we'll measure success out of that agreement.

Finance committee  Third, realize the potential of the continent's energy resources while also increasing energy security, in particular through energy infrastructure and expanding opportunities for Canadian renewable energy. On the Canadian labour market, Canadian Council of Chief Executive members are among the largest employers in Canada.

Finance committee  Thank you so much, Mr. Chairman, committee members, for the invitation to appear here today. Before I begin my specific comments, let me briefly introduce the Canadian Council of Chief Executives. The Canadian Council of Chief Executives is a non-profit and non-partisan organization made up of 150 of the leaders of the largest companies in Canada.

Industry committee  I think you've just heard...speaking as an economist, economists are smart, but lawyers are clever.

Industry committee  The key provision is this control in fact, which is unclear because it's a new facet to the Investment Canada Act. What you're hearing is that businesses want predictability and clarity. I think it's fair enough to say there are always surprises in life, but people don't want to be shocked.