Certainly, Mr. Chair, and thank you for the question.
It is very important, and I would say that when I first started auditing in this area—far too many years ago—the federal government was of the view that it was not really its responsibility but it was helping out where it could. Things have come a long way in that regard. They have a long way to go.
But the quality of water is such a fundamental, basic thing that we all just expect to have every day. I saw something in the Ottawa Citizen: shock and horror that some part of the city had a boil water advisory and it made the front page of the newspaper. Well, that happens every day in first nations communities. It happens all the time. It's a normal part of what they have to face.
When we did our last audit, 75% of the systems were at high risk or medium risk in first nations communities. Now that number is 50%, so it is progress, but there is a long way to go.
What I would say about the legislation is that when it comes into place, that'll be a great step forward. It needs regulations. But then if I go back to the four pillars, it also needs funding. And when we did the audit, that was unclear. The legislation would get passed, then there would be regulations, and then it would be rolled out wherever it was possible to roll it out. But I think we need to have clearer service standards than that.