Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
Thank you for being here, Mr. Minister. I know that you are sensitive to environmental issues, which is quite the asset for the Department of Natural Resources. I welcome that and am very optimistic about it.
I was listening to your presentation earlier and something set me thinking. I would like to hear what you have to say about it. You said that the next intake of the Emissions Reduction Fund will be suited to today's economic outlook and environmental goals, not those of two years ago. I find that interesting, because Professor Pierre-Olivier Pineau, who dropped by to see us on Monday, told us that the Emissions Reduction Fund came at a time when oil prices were very low, which was bad for Alberta's economy, but now, oil prices are much higher and the industry is making a profit. He said that he did not see why it would need this financial support.
Even the name, Emissions Reduction Fund, is a little overblown. As my colleague from Calgary Skyview showed us at the last meeting, the objective of the fund was to support the oil industry when it was going through a bad time during the COVID‑19 crisis. If you are looking for evidence of that, look no further than the Commissioner's report, according to which, two thirds of the projects, 27 projects out of 40, took the support to mean funding to increase the level of production.
With that knowledge, and especially since you stated that we have to concentrate on today's economic outlook and environmental goals, not on those of two years ago, do you believe that the department should drop the third phase of intake for the Emissions Reduction Fund?