That's beautiful. Congratulations, Mr. Kelly.
On that lovely note, we are going to begin today's meeting.
I will remind you that today's meeting is taking place in a hybrid format, pursuant to the Standing Orders. Members are attending in person in the room and remotely using the Zoom application.
Before we continue, I would ask all in-person participants to consult the guidelines written on the cards on the table. These measures are in place to help prevent audio and feedback incidents and to protect the health and safety of all participants, including the interpreters. You will also notice a QR code on the card, which links to a short awareness video.
I would like to remind participants of the following points. Please wait until I recognize you by name before speaking. For those participating via video conference, click on the microphone icon to activate your mic. Please mute yourself when you are not speaking. For those on Zoom, at the bottom of your screen you can select the appropriate channel for interpretation: floor, English or French. For those in the room, you can use the earpiece and select the desired channel.
I would like to remind witnesses that committee members may ask questions in either French or English. If you will need interpretation, please take a moment now to prepare your earpiece and select in advance the listening channel you need to take full advantage of the time allotted for questions and answers. I will remind you that all comments should be addressed through the chair.
Pursuant to Standing Order 83.1, the committee commenced its pre-budget consultations in advance of the 2026 budget.
I would note for today's witnesses and for future witnesses that we have heard from some of you that you are concerned that your submissions are not yet published online. There is a reason for that. They are going through translation. They will all be published online as soon as this process concludes, so do not worry about that at all.
I would like to welcome our witnesses for this first hour.
From the Co-operative Housing Federation of Canada, we have Tim Ross, director general. From Habitat for Humanity Canada, we have Alana Lavoie, the principal director for government affairs. From the Mechanical Contractors Association of Canada, we have Ken Lancastle, chief operating officer.
With that, we will begin with Tim.
You have five minutes, Mr. Ross.