Canada-China Relations committee  I gave a talk to some of their clients who were thinking about immigrating to Canada, and that became controversial in a Globe and Mail article. It was natural for me to encourage Chinese or other foreigners to immigrate to Canada, because I have for many years thought that immig

Canada-China Relations committee  No. I never met them when I was serving as ambassador.

Canada-China Relations committee  No. I had a conversation with Minister Mendicino, at his initiative, which was a general conversation about what he should do about levels of immigration post-pandemic. We had a talk about that. We did not talk about China, as I recall, and certainly not about any of my clients.

Canada-China Relations committee  I was invited to lunch once—a long time ago, before the pandemic—with the current Chinese ambassador. I had lunch with him.

Canada-China Relations committee  I had known him in China when I was ambassador. It was just a social occasion, I suppose. I had lunch with him. That's all. It was dinner, sorry.

Canada-China Relations committee  I would certainly, obviously, comply, if there was such a thing. Right now I cannot divulge names of clients, but we would find a way to do that if that was the law. It wouldn't really bother me if the government wished to do that. It's not a decision for me. It's a decision for

Canada-China Relations committee  The only government of China I have ever received money from was the government of Taiwan, when I went on a trip there with my wife many years ago. I have not received a penny from the government of mainland China as ambassador, as MP or as post-ambassador.

Canada-China Relations committee  The money for those trips came from the Government of Canada or NGOs.

Canada-China Relations committee  Are you talking about the talk I gave about immigration?

Canada-China Relations committee  Okay, I—

Canada-China Relations committee  All right. I see. I always say local staff are vital to our mission in China. They have the expertise we need. We must be careful, yes, but they are essential to the embassy's operations.

Canada-China Relations committee  It's a pleasure to see you as well, Mr. Bergeron. I don't know what the government's new policy is. As Minister Champagne stated, our policy towards China is evolving. When I was the ambassador, the situation wasn't what it is today. That speaks to the need for an evolving polic

Canada-China Relations committee  Are you referring to embassy staff?

Canada-China Relations committee  Thank you very much for your question, and I'm delighted to see some familiar faces again. I think China is always a two-track issue. As I described in my comments, on the one hand, my job was to try to expand ties with China; on the other hand, it was to express our values on h

Canada-China Relations committee  The comment about the election was, I think, inappropriate. The overall comments about the situation with regard to detainees and Meng Wanzhou in Markham I thought were okay.