International Trade committee  No, it was a single capital allocation from the state government, and it was capitalized in 1988, I believe. The institution predates that, but it had a remodelling in 1988 and it was capitalized a few times since. Over the course of that time, it's remained a profitable institution.

International Trade committee  That would be our view, and it would vary slightly based on commodity. As you know, in the north right now there are a number of different commodities that are being produced, but most of them at present are high-value, low-volume commodities, such as diamonds and gold. The reason is that you can carry the product off the site in a briefcase.

International Trade committee  Thank you for your question. I'm sorry, the earpiece is not working. Can you tell me what main-d'oeuvre means? Then I think I can answer your question.

International Trade committee  The general principle with infrastructure in the territories is that the deficit increases as you move east. Even though Yukon, relatively speaking, is the most built environment in the territories, it's still at a significant deficit compared to southern jurisdictions. As you move farther east, to give an example, in Nunavut mining companies have built the largest and longest roads in the territory at 100% private expense.

International Trade committee  As you framed quite well, competitiveness is a large concept. There are a lot of variables at play. Those factors have different implications for different companies, depending on the realities of their operations. One of the themes for today is Canada's north, and as both the witnesses from the chamber and I mentioned, one of the principal things that reduces the competitiveness of the industry in the north is the significant infrastructure deficit.

International Trade committee  That's a complex question, but it does link the themes together quite nicely. At a high level, no, MAC does not have a number with respect to the level of infrastructure that's required to meet demands. For context, our view is that the level of infrastructure relative to the demands that wealth producers in this country require is insufficient.

International Trade committee  Thanks for the question. From a general principles standpoint, the mining industry is highly international; it's a global industry. The Canadian mining industry, as a result, is highly internationalized, so if Canada does not move in step with other jurisdictions with respect to liberalized trade, the risk is that our competitiveness can erode across a number of areas.

International Trade committee  Mr. Chair, esteemed members of the committee, clerk and fellow attendees, I'm Brendan Marshall, vice-president of economic and northern affairs at the Mining Association of Canada. MAC is the national voice of Canada's mining and mineral processing industry. I am pleased to appear and discuss this important matter.

Transport committee  Yes. There is a commodity supply chain table that was established by the previous administration. MAC is represented by a member company, and I know that other industry associations and industries are also represented, as well as the railways. I would also caution you that the discussion around that table to date has been limited through a reluctance to engage in substantive data sharing and analysis.

Transport committee  I want to add to that with respect to data, it's important that it's disclosed publicly. It cannot be only disclosed to the agency, because what we're trying to effect is a behavioural change between the parties at the negotiating table, and if that data goes behind closed doors, we're not going to see that behavioural change in the marketplace.

Transport committee  I would like to add briefly to that. With respect to mandatory volume commitments, we think that's the wrong way to go. It's piecemeal, picking winners and losers in the rail freight market approach. In the long run, further policy steps in that direction are going to be detrimental, so we're wary of that.

Transport committee  Yes.

Transport committee  We're still reviewing some of the recommendations in the Canada Transportation Act, but with respect to creating a super-agency, there is some uncertainty over how effective that would be in addressing some of the challenges that shippers face. I've been working on this file through the last four pieces of legislation that have affected the rail freight market in one respect or another.

Transport committee  The mining industry uses all modes of transportation, ranging from millions of tonnes of coal or iron ore—which is a relatively low-value, high-volume product—to gold and diamonds, which people will fly out on a plane in a briefcase. The whole spectrum of transportation usage is in effect for mining.

Transport committee  Pardon me, but the question is very specific, and I can't offer specific comment on a situation when I'm not familiar with its full scope and details. Again I would come back to the fact that we've been over these issues for years, decades, and for some associations a century, and we have competing claims.