Good afternoon, everybody. I call this meeting to order.
Welcome to meeting number 30 of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates.
The committee is meeting today from 3:32 to 5:32, Ottawa time. We will hear witnesses as part of the committee's study of government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
I'd like to take this opportunity to remind all participants to this meeting that screenshots and taking photos of your screen are not permitted.
To ensure an orderly meeting, I would like to outline a few of the rules. Interpretation of this video conference will work very much like in a regular committee meeting. You have the choice, at the bottom of your screen, of either floor, English or French audio. Before speaking, please wait until I recognize you by name. When you are ready to speak, you can click on the microphone to activate your mike. When you are not speaking, your mike should be on mute.
To raise a point of order during the meeting, committee members should ensure that their microphone is unmuted and say “point of order” to get the chair's attention.
The clerk and the analysts are participating in the meeting virtually today. If you need to speak with them during the meeting, please email them through the committee email address. The clerk can also be reached on his mobile phone.
For those who are participating in the committee room, please note that masks are required unless seated and when physical distancing is not possible.
I will now invite the TBS witnesses to make their opening statements.