Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I want to say that I'm joining you today from my home province of Newfoundland and Labrador. I would like to acknowledge the land on which I gather as the ancestral homeland of the Beothuk, whose culture has been lost forever and can never be recovered. I also acknowledge that the island of Newfoundland is the unceded traditional territory of the Beothuk and the Mi'kmaq. I acknowledge Labrador as the traditional and ancestral homeland of the Innu of Nitassinan, the Inuit of Nunatsiavut, and the Inuit of NunatuKavut. Although each community is distinct, we all desire to chart a way forward together towards reconciliation.
Mr. Pushor, if I could begin with you, we've heard throughout today's testimony a call for change in the regulation level around reviewing projects and the transparency and separation in that process. Could you explain why the AER allowed Imperial Oil to conduct its own investigation into the cause of the spill, despite the potential for conflict of interest and a lack of transparency?