Thank you, Mr. Chair, and thank you to the witnesses.
My questions are for Ms. Payne.
Ms. Payne, Justice Robert Wells appeared before this committee last week. One of the questions I asked him was whether or not the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board or the Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Board could be in a potential conflict of interest, because they are responsible for overseeing the environment, industry regulation, and health and safety. His exact response was, “It could.”
You also mentioned in your presentation a potential conflict. I want you to comment on that. Also I have a part (b) to this question.
In recommendation 29 from Justice Wells' report, part (a) is very well known in terms of an independent offshore safety regulator, but there's also part (b). Part (b) talks about the creation of “a separate and autonomous Safety Division of C-NLOPB, with a separate budget, separate leadership, and an organizational structure designed to deal only with safety matters.”
Are you satisfied that (a) or (b) has been followed through?