Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Just to add to the comments of Mr. Kennedy, the way I understand this, it's clarifying that it's not just in the case that a permit has been applied for and granted for an action; it's actually precluding the situation where the Government of Canada has the power to grant a permit.
A practical example might be an agency of the government that does some kind of development that has a major lasting impact on a salmon spawning stream or something like that. The Minister of Fisheries and Oceans has the power to authorize that activity but may not have actually authorized it. So this is saying it's not a defence that the Government of Canada has the power to authorize that activity. The Minister of Fisheries could have issued a permit for that activity; whether she did or didn't is not considered in this phrase.
I think this is a good clause that clarifies that the power of the Government of Canada to authorize that activity is not a defence for an activity that creates that harm.