I appreciate the question, Mr. Chair, because it gives me a chance to review just how extensive the consultation was and how communities and individuals who felt they hadn't had a chance to express themselves through the National Energy Board review did. Look at the numbers. They are very impressive. Hundreds of people came to these meetings. I believe they responded to a legitimate call for them to be heard, and they were heard, and it was a reflection of what they said that was, I think, reported by the panellists in their report to the government.
More than that, on the website that had been posted throughout this process, there were 35,258 Canadians who completed an online questionnaire about the project, all of which is publicly available; and these consultations complemented the NEB review process where more than 1,600 participants had the opportunity to provide evidence.
Government officials consulted with 117 potentially affected indigenous groups and the outcomes of these consultations are publicly available.
Well, that is a lot of consultation. That is a lot of opportunity for Canadians from coast to coast to coast to weigh in on that decision. Those were the factors of public confidence that the government weighed in its final decision, knowing all the time that this is phase one of the reform of the National Energy Board—
Go ahead.