The staff here and in IT and in the Clerk's office worked very closely with all the MPs to make sure that everything could work. Connectivity was especially a problem in rural and remote areas. It's important that we look at this in light of, for instance, someone who has to come in to Parliament. If they come in and there's a snowstorm, or something causes a problem, it's up to them to get to Parliament to make sure they can vote. Similarly, if you're in a rural area, or you're at home and your connectivity is not that great, you can go to your office or you can go find a place where you can connect.
I can see that Ms. Blaney, for example, is probably in her office. I know that she has some issues. She is a prime example of how we can make it work.
Connectivity was one of the issues we were concerned about, but it certainly put broadband access on the front burner for all Canadians in both rural and metropolitan city areas. When we're looking at connectivity, I think we've pretty well come to the end of it. There are a couple of small exceptions where it could be a little bit of a difficulty, but overall it's been working out very well.
Our ambassadors have been working with everyone. Again, I notice that pretty well everyone has one of these headsets on, which makes a difference. It makes it easier for everyone to hear what you're saying, because we're getting a clear voice coming across. We found that with other microphones, there was an echo, because it was echoing throughout the chamber. No matter how good your microphone is, there is still that bit of a problem, and one that especially affects the interpreters.
I don't believe connectivity is a large issue, overall. Occasionally we get some glitches, but overall, connectivity is very good.