Thank you for the question.
Mr. Chair, the NEB, National Energy Board, regulates in Canada more than 70,000 kilometres of oil and gas pipelines. Basically the amounts—I don't have the volume—but the value of the oil and gas shipped through those pipelines in 2010 was $85.5 billion. It is obviously a very important component of the infrastructure for this country and the economy.
Through these supplementary estimates, the National Energy Board is receiving authority to spend an additional $5.89 million. This is in line with the commitments in budget 2012 to enhance the safety capacity of the National Energy Board, essentially to hire additional safety staff. This will allow the National Energy Board to increase the number of annual inspections it conducts from 100 to 150. There will be a 50% increase in inspections. It would also allow it to double the number of comprehensive audits of pipeline companies that it conducts, from three to six annually. These amounts will be cost recovered from the industry.
The way it works, estimates still have to be voted to give the National Energy Board the authority to spend the moneys. The National Energy Board then charges the companies back for those amounts. In fact, these are not net draws on the fiscal framework, but rather are going to be cost recovered, but you still need the estimates.