Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you for the presentation. I'd like to follow up a bit on where Bryan Hayes was going with his question about what's next.
I'm interested in the part of your mandate that is to help prevent the introduction and the establishment of invasive species. Environment Canada, in the recent budget, cut the invasive alien species partnership program. It's gone. So how do we do that outreach? There seem to be now barriers to that outreach.
I'll name a few groups that no longer have funding regarding invasive species: the Conseil québécois sur les espèces exotiques envahissantes, the Magdalen Islands priority intervention zone committee, the Great Lakes United invasive plant watch network, the Ontario Invasive Plant Council. We've cut them all off.
We have some research, and I understand that you're able to facilitate the prevention or at least the establishment of invasive species, but we're also cutting back on the very partners that could help us in controlling those invasive species.
What is next? We don't seem to have those connections anymore. How are we getting those boots on the ground?