Thank you, Madam Chair.
I've had time to take a closer look at the documents that were provided, and I still have questions about certain things.
Ms. Williams, we see that you had a meeting in May 2025. At that time, Natural Resources Canada was reaching out to the Department of Fisheries and Oceans about measures to mitigate the anticipated impacts on fisheries.
Your notes state that the fish and fish habitat protection program will assess the impacts on fish and their habitat in accordance with the spirit of section 34 of the Fisheries Act, which specifically addresses the protection of fish and their habitat in relation to fisheries management objectives. Furthermore, the request for advice is clear: “…there is a need for science advice to inform anticipated project-specific impact assessments.”
Based on what was done back then, in May 2025, I don't understand why, in your December report, you deliberately refrained from examining the potential impacts of the wind energy industry.
Was there any political pressure on you to scale back the scope of your report?