Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I'd like to thank all the witnesses for being here today.
Normally, I would have questions for the Shared Services Canada representatives, but out of respect for my colleagues in the national capital region, I must inquire about the Phoenix situation. As you know, many of our constituents work in the public service, so we are particularly concerned about this issue.
Ms. Lemay, the last time we met with you was in the summer. We were on the other side of the room and it was a bit warmer out. I had asked you about the backlog. When you said those cases would be resolved by October 31, I asked you whether that was a conservative estimate. You said it was, and you assured us that you would respect the deadline.
I'm having trouble wrapping my head around all this. What happened? The cases in the backlog related to Phoenix were already known. Those cases were on the radar, even those originating from the old system. Did the department understand the source of those cases or not? How did you arrive at October 31 as the deadline for resolving those 80,000 cases?